October 9 - Britain's Bradley Wiggins (pictured) has tried to play down his pre-race favourite's tag ahead of the Herald Sun Tour, which starts in Australia on Sunday, but admitted he would love to add his name to an illustrious list of former winners.


The triple Olympic gold medallist, whose father came from Morwell, Victoria, finished fourth in this year's Tour de France.
 

Wiggins has great affection for the local tour, which starts in Ballarat.
 

He said: "For my dad it was one of his last races as a professional bike rider and my second father [coach] Shane Sutton rode this race and won it.
 

"It's a long-standing event and every year it produces, from Simon Gerrans to Baden Cooke and last year with Stuart O'Grady, it's always got a prestigious winner.
 

"It's always decided on someone who is in form and has been racing well during the year."


Wiggins' father Gary died early last year in New South Wales.


Wiggins, who won two Olympic golds in Beijing last year on the track in the 4000 metres individual and 4000m teams pursuit, said he was unsure about how well he would fare in the Victorian tour.


He said: "It is a pretty good race for me as it has a time trial which suits me and the overall classification.


"But the race has moved on quite a lot in recent years, the standard is a lot higher it is better organised, it is going to be a real competitive race.


"It's been a long year and I wouldn't put too much expectation on me, but I am here and I want to win and we'll see how we go."


Colac, Warrnambool, Apollo Bay, Anglesea, Barwon Heads and Geelong will all host stages this year before the race rolls into Melbourne for a twilight final-stage circuit race on Lygon Street on 17 October.