Tourism Minister Jane Lomax-Smith today announced Santos as the new naming rights sponsor of the Tour Down Under.

The four-year deal will see the Tour, which in 2009 became the biggest sporting event in South Australian history, renamed the Santos Tour Down Under.

“Having grown from strength to strength since its inception in 1999, the Santos Tour Down Under is a truly world-class event; kicking off the world cycling calendar and attracting the heroes of the sport to compete in Adelaide,” Dr Lomax-Smith said.

“This exciting partnership with Santos will take the event to a new level.

“The investment from Santos will increase the marketing of the event, to attract even more visitors from interstate to travel to South Australia.

“In 2009, over 36,200 people traveled from interstate and overseas to be part of the excitement of the Tour, contributing $39million to the State’s economy. We hope to achieve even more in 2010.

“We will also see further developments of the event website, with more opportunities for the cycling community to continually engage with the Santos Tour Down Under,” Dr Lomax-Smith said.

Santos Chief Executive Officer David Knox said: “The Santos Tour Down Under is a world-class sporting event and we are pleased to support an event that provides substantial economic and community benefits for South Australia.

“The event is deserving of a major partner and we are confident this partnership will help to strengthen the standing of the Santos Tour for years to come,” Mr Knox said.

Dr Lomax-Smith said the 2009 event was the biggest in the Tour’s history, achieving crowds of over three quarters of a million people and generating millions of dollars of media coverage and economic impact.

“The race is now truly established on the world stage; kicking off the annual UCI ProTour calendar and attracting the best teams and riders to Adelaide each January,” Dr Lomax-Smith said.

The 2010 Santos Tour Down Under will be held in South Australia from 17-24 January 2010. For more information, visit www.tourdownunder.com.au.