Jerry Ryan, owner of the Jayco-AlUla and Liv AlUla Jayco teams and longtime cycling philanthropist, was inducted into the Sports Australia Hall of Fame for his impact on the sport and philanthropy.

Ryan joins seven other inductees, including surfing champion Mick Fanning, Olympic hurdler Sally Pearson, and motorsports driver Mark Scaife, as members of the 2024 Hall of Fame.

As a general member of the Sports Australia Hall of Fame, Ryan joins a special roster of honorees that includes many of Australia's most famous athletes, including Donald Bradman, Dawn Fraser, Kathy Freeman, and Rod Laver. 2024 Hall of Fame The inductees will be honored at a gala dinner in Melbourne on November 18.

Ryan, 73, is already a member of the Australian Cycling Hall of Fame and a past president of Cycling Australia. Without Ryan's continued financial support and business acumen, Australian cycling would not have been the same, nor would it have become a global success; he was ranked 199th on the list of the 200 richest people in Australia in 2023, with a net worth of A$693 million (about 60 million.

After helping Kathy Watt win Olympic gold in 1992, Ryan founded and funded the Jayco Cycling Team, and through the Victorian Institute of Sport and Australian Institute of Sport programs through which he supported the next generation of Australian cyclists.

Ryan has owned and often funded the Green Edge Cycling Team for over a decade. The team is now known as the Jayco Arla team for men and, since 2012, the Liv Arla Jayco team for women. Both have been successful at the World Tour level.

Many other sports have benefited from Ryan's investments, including basketball, horse racing, Australian rules football, and rugby league. Most recently, the company is supporting the Provelo Super League, an Australian racing series that will begin in early 2025. He often travels to Europe to watch teams compete in the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France. Ryan's businesses include the caravan company Jayco Australia, the theater company Global Creatures, and owning wineries and resorts.

“I haven't accepted being chosen yet,” Ryan said modestly.

“I would never dream of receiving such an honor, but I am very happy. Not only for myself, but for all those who have supported me. My family, my friends, and my colleagues at work.

[18] “I am definitely proud to be in that room and to look around at all the people who are also receiving this award. You have a vision, you have a dream. But I have certainly surpassed what I grew up believing I could achieve as a boy.