Philip Grant Anderson (born 20 March 1958) is a British-born Australian former professional racing cyclist. In 1981 he became the first Australian and the first cyclist from outside Europe to wear the yellow jersey as leader of the Tour de France.
Anderson competed professionally between 1980 and 1994. His major victories included the Amstel Gold Race, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, Tour de Suisse, Paris–Tours, Milano–Torino and Tour de Romandie, as well as stages of both the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia.
Anderson was born in London and moved to Melbourne, Australia, as a child. He grew up in Kew and attended Trinity Grammar School, graduating in 1975.
He began competitive cycling at around the age of 16. Anderson later recalled encountering a local bicycle race near his home and asking how he could become involved in the sport. He was eventually directed to the Hawthorn Cycling Club, where he attended a meeting and began racing.
Anderson did not achieve immediate success. He later recalled finishing near the rear of the field in his first handicap race, but continued competing and gradually improved. Within his first years in the sport he progressed through junior competition and won a junior time trial championship.
Ted Sanders, a prominent figure in the Hawthorn cycling community, became a mentor to Anderson during his development as a young rider. A Cyclingnews retrospective on Anderson's first Tour de France yellow jersey explicitly identified Sanders as Anderson's mentor when recounting Australian newspaper coverage of Anderson's achievement in 1981.
Future professional cyclist Allan Peiper was another member of Hawthorn Cycling Club. Peiper later recalled Anderson joining the club with his friend Peter Darbyshire, while Peiper and future European six-day rider Tom Sawyer were also among the young riders at Hawthorn.
Anderson's performances improved rapidly during the late 1970s. In 1977 he won the Dulux Tour of the North Island in New Zealand.
In 1978 he was part of the winning team at the Australian team time trial championship in Brisbane. That year he also represented Australia at the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada, winning the men's road race at the age of 20.
Anderson travelled to France in 1979 and joined the Athletic Club de Boulogne-Billancourt (ACBB), one of Europe's leading amateur clubs and an important pathway into professional cycling.
His original ambition remained selection for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, and Anderson initially regarded his European racing as preparation for the Games.
During his season with ACBB he raced alongside riders including Robert Millar and Mark Bell. Anderson won several races during the year, including the Tour de l'Essonne and Tour de l'Hérault, and won the amateur Grand Prix des Nations.
His success in France instead opened the door to a professional career. Anderson abandoned his Olympic ambitions and signed with the French Peugeot professional team for 1980.
Peugeot and the Tour de France
Anderson became a professional with Peugeot in 1980. His transition to European professional cycling required adapting to substantially longer races, larger fields and the internal hierarchy of a French professional team.
He made his Tour de France debut in 1981.
During a mountain stage in the Pyrenees, Anderson remained with the leading riders rather than dropping back to assist his designated team leader. His performance placed him into the overall race lead.
Anderson consequently became the first Australian and first non-European cyclist to wear the Tour de France yellow jersey.