The move would see prize-money increased and allow more international or world tour riders to compete. The Tour Down Under and Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race are the only two UCI World Tour events in Australia.

The 107^th edition of the Melbourne to Warrnambool Cycling Classic was received with much fanfare on Saturday, pulling one of its biggest crowds in recent memory.

"Crowds on Saturday were the biggest I'd ever seen, you're probably going back to the 1970s to get a crowd as big as that," Wilson said.

Wilson said it was "humbling" for a cyclist of four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome's calibre to endorse the event after the 37-year-old tackled the 267km course for the first time.

"The feedback we got from the cyclists all the way up to Chris Froome was it was an outstanding event," he said. "Everything that's delivered with how the race runs down the road and how the Warrnambool community receive it is the equivalent of providing a world-level or world tour event. The event deserves the best cyclists."

The Warrnambool Women's Classic enjoyed stable entries from its first to second editions, with 46 competing in 2022 and 47 this year.

"The reception we get from the women is just so good because they don't have anything like it," Wilson said. "There really is a huge amount of growth to be had in running the Warrnambool Women's Cycling Classic"

Wilson said there should be no question mark surrounding the women's classic's inclusion in the program moving forward.

"In Australia, we have as many outstanding women cyclists on the world stage as what we we do men," he said. "We need to celebrate that and the Melbourne to Warrnambool is the one true monument of Australian cycling and women need to be represented in that."

Wilson praised the work of the 70-odd volunteers, and as well as the support from the Warrnambool community.

"People gave up their time, they weren't paid to do it and turned up and supported it," he said.

"And they told us how satisfied they were to be involved in a world-class event. The support, it was incredible."

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