Leigh Palmer (AUS)

Leigh Palmer riding in 1994 when he was 14.  He did not take cycling too seriously until 1996 when he had a few top ten finishes in state titles and a third place in the state criterium titles.  From 1996 to 1998 he won five state medals, had a top ten in the Australian titles and narrowly missed out on a spot on the junior world squad.  After that, he took a fair bit of time off the bike until he got the itch again. In 2001 he joined the Hardings European team which was situated in Brisbane.  While racing for Hardings, he had 20 top ten placings, two state medals and finished eighth in the Noosa International Criterium (first amateur). In 2002, he joined the Astra Merida cycling team and had quite a successful year working with the team. He won five state medals and finished in the top 15 in every race he contested, winning five times.