WA’s Welsford earns first WorldTour victory!

Star West Aussie cyclist Sam Welsford has ticked off another major career achievement by winning the opening stage of the Tour Down Under on Tuesday in Adelaide.

It is the first WorldTour victory for the 27-year-old, who grew up in Perth racing at VenuesWest’s Speedome facility.

The win on the road goes alongside his achievements on the track, where he has won two Commonwealth Games gold medals (2018 Scratch and Team Pursuit), an Olympic silver medal (2016 Team Pursuit) and an Olympic bronze medal (2020 Team Pursuit).

In the wake of the victory, Welsford spoke about his upbringing as a track cyclist as he targets participating in his third Olympic Games in Paris this year.

"I think it'd be nice to try to have another crack at the Team Pursuit," he said.

"Get that gold medal, it's the one I don't have.

"The track's super important to me. I grew up doing it and you know, I've been to two Olympic cycles so to do one more I think it's the kind of icing on the cake for my track career."

In the meantime, Welsford’s sole focus is success on the road as he takes the Orange Jersey into the second stage on Wednesday.

He is racing for the German Bora-Hansgrohe team, who recently signed the West Aussie for two years.