The Austral Wheel Race is an Australian track cycling handicap race first held in Melbourne in 1887. It is one of the world's oldest surviving track cycling races and is owned and run by AusCycling Victoria. The race is traditionally conducted as a handicap, with riders assigned different starting marks according to ability and the strongest riders starting from scratch.

The inaugural Austral was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in November 1887. Over its history the event has been staged at a succession of Melbourne tracks, including the Exhibition tracks, the North Essendon board track, Olympic Park Velodrome, Brunswick, Coburg and Northcote velodromes, John Cain Arena and the Darebin International Sports Centre.

In 2025 the men's race was won by Liam Walsh from a 15-metre handicap and the women's race by Leani van der Berg from 90 metres.

History

Origins and early years

The race developed from the relationship between the Melbourne Bicycle Club and the Melbourne Cricket Ground during the growth of organised cycling in Melbourne in the 1880s. The Melbourne Bicycle Club staged major cycling meetings at the MCG, where races on the grass track attracted large crowds.

The first race under the Austral name was held at the MCG on 19 November 1887. H. H. Lambton won the two-mile handicap from a mark of 210 yards. The first six editions were ridden on high-wheel or penny-farthing bicycles before the race changed to the modern-style safety bicycle in 1893.

Contemporary and later accounts have differed over the inaugural prize. Older histories described the prize as a grand piano valued at £200, while Museums Victoria records it as a walnut cabinet containing 152 pieces of silver and cutlery valued at £200. Research published in 2024 by the Austral Wheelrace and AusCycling's Victorian History Archive likewise identifies the prize as a walnut cabinet of silver and notes that the piano account had been repeated incorrectly in earlier histories.

By the 1890s cycling had become a major spectator sport in Melbourne. Museums Victoria describes the Austral as the most valuable cycle race in the world during that decade and notes that it attracted international competitors. Austral meetings could attract crowds numbering in the tens of thousands.

In 1898 bicycle mechanic and professional cyclist Tom Finnigan won the Austral from a handicap of . His prize of 240 sovereigns enabled him to establish a suburban bicycle shop, which became Malvern Star.

1901 controversy

The 1901 Austral became one of the most controversial editions of the race. Irish-born American-based professional William "Plugger" Martin started from scratch and won the two-mile handicap by about fifteen yards.

Enormous sums were wagered on the race and allegations subsequently emerged that competitors had been bribed or intimidated to assist Martin. An inquiry resulted in one rider being suspended for pacemaking on Martin's behalf, although no broader action was taken. Later accounts alleged that bookmaker and businessman John Wren had arranged the result. The Australian Dictionary of Biography describes it as credible that Wren fixed Martin's victory.

The episode has remained a prominent part of the race's history. A 2024 historical account by cycling historian and photographer Ray Bowles and AusCycling's Victorian History Archive examined the financial and sporting circumstances surrounding the 1901 event.

Interwar period

The First World War interrupted the event and there was no Austral for seven years. Racing resumed in 1920 at the Exhibition Oval.

In 1922 Jack Fitzgerald won from scratch at the Exhibition Oval in front of an estimated crowd of 15,000. The following year two Australs were staged by different promoters at different venues. In 1927 three editions were held as rival promoters and venues competed to stage the event.

During this period the Austral was staged at the Exhibition Oval and the Motordrome at Olympic Park. The Motordrome was a steeply banked concrete stadium built primarily for motorcycle racing but also used for cycling and Australian rules football. Richard "Fatty" Lamb won the final Austral held there in 1929.

North Essendon and the post-war era

During the late 1930s promoter Jack Campbell relocated a wooden track from the Exhibition site to North Essendon. The North Essendon board track became an important centre of Victorian track cycling and hosted the Austral from 1939 through the 1950s.

The period produced a number of notable winners. Tas Johnson won in 1944, and his son Gordon Johnson later won the race from scratch in 1973.

Following the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, the Austral moved to the Olympic Park Velodrome. The Olympic-standard track had been constructed for the Games and, after modification, became the race's principal venue from 1958 to 1970. Sid Patterson won the Austral from scratch in 1962 and again in 1964.

Suburban velodromes

The closure of the Olympic Park Velodrome after the 1970 Austral left the event without an established venue. Brunswick Amateur Cycling Club offered its concrete velodrome, which was suitable for open racing and was then Melbourne's only cycling track with lighting. The Austral moved to Brunswick in 1971.

Over the following three decades the race moved among Melbourne's suburban velodromes at Brunswick, Northcote and Coburg. Winners during this period included world champions Gordon Johnson, Danny Clark and Steele Bishop, as well as David Sanders.

Clark won from scratch in 1977, 1986 and 1990. Victorian Stephen Pate surpassed that record with four victories, winning from scratch in 1988, from minus 10 metres in 1991, from minus 20 metres in 1993 and again from scratch in 1999.

In 2000 Gary Neiwand won the final Austral held at the outdoor Northcote Velodrome before the race moved indoors.

Indoor era

The 2001 Austral was the first edition conducted on an indoor velodrome, moving to the newly built Vodafone Arena, now John Cain Arena. Mark French won the men's race from an 80-metre handicap. The venue's 250-metre timber track brought the Austral into a modern indoor setting after more than a century of outdoor racing.

Tasmanian Darren Young won from scratch in 2002 and repeated the result in 2003, becoming the first rider in the event's history to win consecutive editions.

The Darebin International Sports Centre (DISC) later became another major home of the race. The Austral was staged there from 2009 and again from 2021, while editions between those periods also returned to John Cain Arena.

The men's 2023 race was won from scratch by Graeme Frislie in 1 minute 55.03 seconds, an average speed of 62.59 km/h. Noah Blannin won the 127th men's Austral in 2024 from 210 metres, while Claudia Marcks won the women's race from 80 metres. In 2025 Liam Walsh won the men's race from 15 metres and Leani van der Berg won the women's race from 90 metres.

Women's Austral

A women's Austral was first staged at Northcote Velodrome in 2000, with Helen Ingpen winning from a 210-metre handicap. The event was not continued immediately, and no women's Austral was held for the following decade.

Women's handicap racing returned to the Austral program in 2011, although the race was not yet styled as the Women's Austral. In 2012 the event formally adopted the Women's Austral name, with Annette Edmondson winning from scratch. The women's race has subsequently become a regular part of the Austral program.

Historical preservation

The history of the Austral has been documented by AusCycling's Victorian History and Heritage subcommittee, which manages the AusCycling Victorian History Archive. The collection contains approximately 5,000 items relating to Victorian road and track cycling and is led by cycling historian and photographer Ray Bowles.

In 2024 Bowles and the Victorian History Archive produced an eight-part history of the Austral Wheelrace, tracing the event from its origins at the Melbourne Cricket Ground through its different promoters, venues and eras of track cycling to the modern indoor event.

Prize money Prize money has varied, following the fashion for cycling, from a grand piano to monetary prizes of 240 sovereigns in 1898, 450 sovereigns in 1902, to a low of $1500 during the 1970s, increasing to $5,000 in 1982, and exceeding $18,000 since 2000.

Past winners

Past competitors include distinguished Australian and international cyclists, including Jackie Clark, Gordon Johnson, Steele Bishop, Sid Patterson, Russell Mockridge, Danny Clarke, Brett Aitken, Gary Neiwand and Shane Kelly.

The record for the most wins belongs to Victorian Stephen Pate with four victories: in 1988 from scratch, in 1991 from minus 10m, in 1993 from minus 20m and 1999 from scratch.

In 2000, Neiwand was handicapped on 70m for the millennium edition and won comfortably.

Austral Wheel Race WinnersYearVenueMen's WinnerHandicapRef.Women's WinnerHandicap 1887 MCG 1888 MCG 1889 MCG 1890 MCG 1891 MCG 1892 MCG 1893 MCG 1894 MCG 1895 MCG 1896 MCG 1897 MCG 1898 MCG 1899 MCG 1900 MCG 1901 MCG 1902 MCG 1903 MCG 1904 EXA 1905 EXA 1906 EXA 1907 MCG 1908 MCG 1909 MCG 1910 MCG 1912 EXI 1913 EXI 1920 EXA 1921 EXA 1922 EXA 1923 EXA 1923 MD 1925 MD 1925 EXA 1927Same Year, Different Season, Venues & Promoters EXA 1927 MD 1927 MD 1929 MD 1936Same Year, Different Season MD 1936 EXB 1937 EXB 1938 EXB 1939 NE 1940 NE 1941 NE 1942 NE 1944 NE 1944 NE 1945 NE 1946 NE 1947 NE 1948 NE 1950 NE 1951 NE 1952 NE 1953 NE 1954 NE 1955 NE 1956 NE 1957 NE 1958 OP 1959 OP 1960 OP 1961 OP 1962 OP 1963 OP 1964 OP 1965 OP 1966 OP 1967 OP 1968 OP 1969 OP 1970 OP 1971 BV 1972 BV 1973 BV 1974 BV 1975 NV 1976 NV 1977 NV 1978 CV 1979 CV 1980 CV 1981 CV 1982 NV 1983 NV 1984 NV 1985 NV 1986 CV 1987 NV 1988 NV 1989 NV 1990 NV 1991 NV 1992 NV 1993 NV 1994 NV 1995 NV 1996 NV 1997 NV 1998 NV 1999 NV 2000 NV 2001 JCA 2002 JCA 2003 JCA 2004 JCA 2005 JCA 2006 JCA 2007 JCA 2008 JCA 2009 JCA 2009 DISC 2011 DISC 2012 DISC 2013 DISC 2014 DISC 2014JCA2015JCA 2016JCA; 2017JCA 2018JCA 2019JCA 2021DISC 2022DISC 2022DISC Alexandra Manly 15 m1262023DISC1272024DISCNoah Blannin210 mClauda Marcks80 m1282025DISCLiam Walsh15 mLeani Van Der Berg90 m

Venues VenuesVenueSurfaceYears BV Brunswick Velodrome Cement 1971–1974 CV Coburg Velodrome Cement 1978–1981, 1986 DISC Darebin International Sports Centre Timber 2009–2014, 2021–Present EXA Exhibition Track Asphalt 1904–1906, 1920–1923, 1925–1927 EXB Exhibition Board Track Timber 1936–1938 EXI Exhibition Indoor Track Timber 1912–1913 JCA John Cain Arena Timber 2001–2009, 2014–2019MCG Melbourne Cricket Ground Grass 1887–1903, 1907–1910 MD Motordrome (Olympic Park) Cement 1923–1925, 1927–1936 NE North Essendon Board Track Timber 1939–1957 NV Northcote Velodrome Cement 1975–1977, 1982–1985, 1988–2000 OP Olympic Park Velodrome Timber 1958–1970

Notes

References

External links

Austral Wheel Race history