Cadel Evans admitted his lifetime dream had been fulfilled when he finally secured victory on one of the toughest editions of the Tour de France in recent years.
 
"It's been years of hard work and there were a lot of moments in these three weeks where our Tour was lost but to get here safely with all my skin... just that alone is a quest in itself," said Evans. "But to be here wearing the yellow jersey - for my team, my country, a group of people around me... it leaves me a little lost for words."

Evans, who finished runner-up in both 2007 and 2008, has had a habit of setting 'firsts' for Australian cyclists.
 
Thirty years after pioneering compatriot Phil Anderson paved the way for dozens of young Australians by becoming the first non-European to pull on the yellow jersey, Evans finally landed cycling's holy grail.



After stepping off the podium, where he was draped in an Australian flag and flanked by Luxembourg brothers Andy and Frank Schleck, Evans admitted it was Spanish great Miguel Indurain who had inspired him.

"As a young child we aspire to a lot of things in life and watching the Tour de France in 1991 and seeing (Miguel) Indurain tear everyone to pieces planted a small seed in my head that continued to grow," said Evans. "I went through some difficult periods - for two years I was really unlucky coming so close to winning but maybe it's just made it all that more special now."

In his native Australia there have been calls for a national holiday to honor Evans's feat. In the meantime, Evans got a little taste of 'back home' when pop star Tina Arena stepped up to the podium to sing the national anthem, Advance Australia Fair.

Speaking in French, an emotional Arena admitted afterwards: "For Cadel to come to Europe and spend so much time chasing his dream shows what he is made of. As Australians, we're very proud of what he has achieved."

Evans added: "I was a bit surprised that Tina Arena came out to sing the anthem, that was very nice of her. "I think thats the ultimate dream of a Tour rider, to stand on the Champs-Elysees with an Australian singing the national anthem... it's not a dream that comes true for many Australians. "This win is for everyone in our country. Its amazing."

In what was one of the toughest and most crash-marred Tours in years, Evans
started with a bang, finishing second on stage one to Philippe Gilbert and then beating three-time champion Alberto Contador to win stage four to Mur de Bretagne in Brittany.



His BMC team flanked him everywhere he went throughout the race and when it
came to the mountains Evans stuck with the best and, when the chips were down, battled valiantly to limit the damage.

He emerged from the final day in the mountains at Alpe d'Huez on Friday's 19th stage in second overall with a 57sec deficit to Andy Schleck. And in a stunning 20th stage time trial Evans beat the Luxembourg climbing specialist by 2:30 to push the Leopard-Trek leader down to second at 1:34.

After a final stage won by British sprinter Mark Cavendish, Evans was immediately flanked by his team. But he warned any aspiring champions that victories in the world's premier cycling event take years of dedication and hard work.

"Things were shaping up really nicely but it's not over until you cross the
finish line. Now we have, so it's done and won," he said.

He added: "It was a little bit of a different Tour de France in that there was a bit of defending from all the teams and we didn't go on the attack until the final time trial.

"I hope Ive brought a great deal of joy to my countrymen. It's been a pleasure and an honor to fly the flag over here."