The championships got underway in the farming area of Wartburg in KwaZulu-Natal in warm and humid conditions. Time Trial specialists raced against the clock for the opportunity to be crowned the national champion in this specialist race.
“It’s early season now so I’m just doing all the basics right now and building the foundations for the rest of the season. The route was quick, it was fast but there was a lot of climbing too, which was very deceiving since I didn’t ride the course beforehand. My focus was the Time Trial because that is the one where I can measure myself, the road race will be fun,” said Van Dyk.
Celebrity ‘DJ’ Palesa Manaleng (H3) competed in her first national time trial after diving into the deep end late last year at the UCI para-cycling Road World Cup in Pietermaritzburg as her first opportunity to race in a time trial.
London 2012 Paralympian Stuart McCreadie (H3) has returned to the racing scene after taking a break from competing last year. “Even though I didn’t compete, I was still riding a lot and putting in that all-important time on the bike with long rides. Coming back now, I feel almost rested from the stresses and strains of competition.”
Local resident and rising mountain bike star, Frankie du Toit (Kargo Pro MTB Team) enjoyed racing in her hometown on the familiar training hills of the area. “The course pushed you so it made sure that the best rider won,” she said. “I enjoyed the local support.”
Cycling South Africa’s Road Commission Director, Bosseau Boshoff, was pleased with the race organisation and the level of racing on the opening day of the Championships.
“On the first day of a competition there’s always going to be some teething problems but between the organisers and the commissaires, I think they sorted it out well – the riders had to wait a little bit for their results. It’s nice to see new faces on the podium, which means there’s new blood coming into the sport – it’s refreshing.”
In terms of the status of the event, Boshoff added: “Not only is there pride for the riders to compete but there are some UCI points and the national jersey up for grabs. For the riders, it ups their status and their value as a rider. It’s then easier for them to get into bigger teams and build a better cycling career.”
Cycling SA Para-cycling Commission Director, Dr Mike Burns explained how the national champs has many functions. “For example, there about five new riders who have just started para-cycling, so it was nice to see them compete for the first time.
I think we’ve got at least two new riders, Gary Coetzee (C4) and Gavin Cowden (C5), who look really competitive today so I’m looking forward to seeing these new riders shape.
“It’s also about team selection for the national team that will compete in the very first UCI World Cup of the season in Pietermaritzburg in May. So we will be making the national team selection based on these results.
Thirdly, it’s the very first race on the road to Rio, so it’s incredibly important to see how our Rio Squad riders are looking. It’s from this base that we are going to monitor them, then the World Cup in Pietermaritzburg, and so on.”
Racing continues on Thursday with the Elite, Under 23 and Junior Men Time Trial from 8.30am, plus the Masters’ Men 30-34, 35-39, 40-44 and 45-49 as well as the para-cycling road race, which begins later in the day.
Source: African News Agency (ANA)
