Rabobank must wish every race had an ochre leader’s jersey. 

Having withdrawn its name from the team it will continue to support financially in 2013, the Dutch bank will have smiled at images of Blanco’s Tom Jelte Slagter celebrating in orange and blue.

Lance Armstrong may have inflicted untold damage on the sport, even driving away one of its biggest backers, but with clean, young riders like Slagter, better times lay ahead.

The future may not be orange, but it is certainly bright.

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Andre Greipel’s influence on the Tour Down Under extends to the publicity caravan

Clear blue skies, glorious sunshine – little wonder the WorldTour heads south for winter

Philippe Gilbert is certainly enjoying his tenure in the rainbow stripes of world road race champion

And relax…Andre Greipel savours his hundredth professional victoryTom Jelte Slagter is a popular winner of the 2013 Tour Down Under. The 23-year-old Dutchman has a bright future

Geraint Thomas topped the overall classification in the points competition, after contesting all of the intermediate sprints on the final stage