BROWN SCORES PODIUM FINISH DOWN UNDER

Aussie leads Rabobank to top team ranking at ProTour stage race

Rabobank’s Graeme Brown scored a second-place finish in Wednesday’s 145-kilometer Stage 2 of the Tour Down Under stage race. On a hot day of racing that was filled with attacks in Australia’s Adelaide Hills, Brown made the final selection and sprinted to second behind fellow Aussie Allan Davis of the Quick Step team. Brown now sits third overall in the general classification.

Brown’s finish led the Rabobank squad to the top spot in the team rankings. Rabobank, riding Giant TCR Advanced SL team bikes, sits ahead of Team Columbia-High Road (second) and Francaise des Jeux (third).

As the opener to the season-long ProTour—and the only ProTour event outside of Europe—the Tour Down Under is seen as the first major test of the season. Nineteen of the world’s best teams are competing in the 802-kilometer race, which concludes this Sunday.