His appearance in the elite men's time trial is not the first by a former Australian rower at the championships.

The late Amy Gillett made the transition, claiming a bronze medal in the titles at Buninyong in 2005.

Last year, Sally Robbins created a media frenzy with her appearance.

Robbins, who rode in the time trial and road race, had been a controversial figure for her appearance in the women's eight at the 2004 Olympic Games, when she dropped her oar and lay down in the boat in the last 400 metres _ costing the crew any chance of getting a medal.

Ginn made an early impact on the bike, winning an Oceania time trial title in New Zealand last year.

This performance means he will be one of the last riders to start today.

Ginn, 34, took up cycling after a back injury led to him spending a lot of time on a bike.

He said, after winning in NZ, that the nationals would be a really good chance to see how he would compare with the better riders in Australia.

"From me it's the motivation of wanting to see how far we can take it," Ginn explained.

"I'm open to any opportunity to perform .th.th. give me a chance and I will see how I go.

"It's a positive start to it all and I didn't come here with any expectations, apart from seeing how I could go," Ginn said.