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The 2010 UCI ProTour again kicks off in Australia with the Santos Tour Down Under stage race in Adelaide.

With major new teams Team Sky and Team RadioShack making their racing debut Down Under and with the iconic Lance Armstrong riding for a second year, the Tour Down Under will give cycling a high-profile start to what promises to be an excellent season of racing.

Australia is in the southern hemisphere so it is the middle of summer in January. That guarantees warm weather and makes the race an ideal start for many European riders who are unable to train in the cold conditions at home.

The Tour Down Under is raced around the city of Adelaide in South Australia and this makes logistics and accommodation easy to organise for everybody in the race.

Thanks to its inclusion in the UCI ProTour, the Tour Down Under features the best teams in the professional cycling peloton. Many teams have Australian riders in their line-up, creating a fascinating local rivalry on a global stage.

This year World Champion Cadel Evans will wear his rainbow jersey as he debuts with the BMC team, while Robbie McEwen (Team Katusha) will take on sprint rivals Graeme Brown (Rabobank), Baden Cooke (Team Saxo Bank) and 2009 overall winner Allan Davis (Astana).

Davis took overall victory thanks to winning three high-speed sprints but will face competition from his Australian rivals and from 2008 winner André Greipel (Team HTC-Columbia).
The racing in Australia kicks off with the Cancer Council Helpline Classic criterium on January 17th before the Tour Down Under stage race begins on Tuesday January 19th with a 141km stage from Clare to Tanunda.