WHEN TV RELATIONSHIP COMES TO THE END OF THE ROAD: P35
ALMOST a century before Cadel Evans stormed his way down the Champs Elysees to win the 2011 Tour de France, a bloke nicknamed “Oppy” was busy forging Australia’s reputation in the world of cycling.
Oppy was Hubert Opperman, a cyclist who would show the world that his young country — still shaping its own national identity — was one of great fortitude and capable of holding its own against the world’s best riders in the world’s greatest race.
His was a name that would be mentioned alongside Bradman and Phar Lap, a source of pride for an Australia limping its way through the Great Depression.
“There was only one Phar Lap: There is only one ‘Oppy’,” a reporter for the Courier Mail wrote in 1932.
Oppy led the first-ever Australasian Tour de France team in 1928, individually finishing 18th, before returning in 1931 to finish 12th — despite suffering from dysentery and multiple accidents — after reaching as high as sixth.
The iconic Aussie then played a leading role in sending future national teams to compete in the Tour, helping to establish his homeland as one of fierce competitors in the great race.
Oppy was named captain of the Australian Tour de France team of the century in 2014 — ahead of Cadel Evans, the only ever Aussie to win the race — such is his standing still in the world of Australian cycling,
Oppy’s professional cycling career all but came to a stop when World War II was declared and he joined the Royal Australian Air Force in 1940. Almost a decade later he moved into politics, joining the Liberal Party and winning the seat of Corio in 1949.
He continued cycling into his 90s, until his wife made him stop due to safety fears. He died on an exercise bike when he was 92.
Oppy’s is a story of sporting triumph, but also one of an often turbulent political career as the MP for Corio, serving as the Immigration Minister in the Menzies Government.
All aspects of Oppy’s life have been explored in the new biography Oppy: The life of Sir Hubert Opperman.
Author Daniel Oakman touts the book as the first to consider the legacy of Oppy’s post-cycling career all the way to his death.
Oakman is a Canberra-based writer, historian and bike rider, whose first book Facing Asia was short-listed for the NSW Premier’s History Awards.