Former Junior World Champion and current Australian and Oceania Champion, Cameron Wright, will add some international flavour to Round 3 of the Cycling South Africa XCO Series, presented by Insect Science at Summerplace Game Reserve, Limpopo on Saturday, 30 April.
The 22-year-old South African-born Wright, who moved to Australia a decade ago, will start as one of the favourites in a strong Elite men’s field. Wright, the 2017 Junior XCO World Champion, who races for the Giant Factory Racing Team, is in his final year as an Under-23 but will be racing in the Elite division in an effort to collect UCI points and prepare for the upcoming World Cup races in Europe.
Another of the favourites in the Elite men’s race is London Olympian, Philip Buys. The Pyga EuroSteel rider showed that he’s in good form after claiming the silver medal at the African Championships in Namibia last Saturday. Other top riders on the start list are Arno du Toit (Insect Science Mountain Biking) and Luke Moir (Trek South Africa).
“I do feel quite good. My numbers are looking really solid and I would say my form is good enough for where I want to be for this race,” said Buys. “I like rocky technical climbing so I do think the course at Summerplace suits me. Being a bit bigger than the other guys, I have that bit of extra torque to power through that kind of terrain.”
Wright (introduction image – photo by Wes Lonergan) has done one race during his South African campaign, finishing third at a Namibian UCI Category 1 race in Windhoek. He was entered for Round 2 of the SA XCO Cup at Stellenbosch, but the race was cancelled due to dangerous conditions. The Australian says he’s looking forward to the Limpopo event.
“I struggled a bit with the altitude and dryness in Windhoek, but I’ve been in South Africa for a few weeks now and have got more accustomed to the conditions. I also like technical courses with short, punchy climbs which I believe is what the Summerplace course is like,” said Wright.
Du Toit won the first Round of the SA Cup Series in Parys in early March and will be keen to shine at the event of which his team sponsor, Insect Science, is also the event sponsor. His teammates, Keagan Bontekoning, Herman Fourie and Gunther Katze will also be on the Elite men’s start line at the event, which carries a UCI Category 1 status.
Wessel Botha and Stuart Marais of Imbuko Type Dev have also entered as have the Computer Mania trio of Daniel van der Walt, Johan van Zyl and Luca Ruwiel. Seasoned Gauteng racer, Jan Withaar, will also be in action.
In the Elite women’s race, the crowd will be treated to the ongoing duel between Mariske Strauss (Rola/Liv) and Candice Lill (Faces/Seattle). After teaming up to finish second overall at last month’s Absa Cape Epic, Strauss claimed the African Championships title in Namibia last weekend, beating Lill into second place by 39 seconds.
Both are heading to Europe to race soon and will be eager to depart on a high note.
“I enjoyed racing the course at Summerplace last year and I’m almost back to full strength after being ill for a while. I’m really looking forward to Saturday’s race,” said Lill, who competed at the London and Tokyo Olympic Games.
The Summerplace XCO course is one of the more technical in the country. At 4.3km in distance with 185m ascent it’s a course with one longish climb and flowy descent with the remainder a series of short, steep climbs and descents on rocky terrain. The Nippers and Sprogs will race on a separate course.
There is a full schedule of age group racing starting from 08h00. Wildair TV will have live coverage of the racing on their Instagram stories feed.
Summerplace Game Reserve is located in the Waterberg region of the Limpopo Province. It has invested heavily in creating a stimulating mountain bike trails network that appeals to all levels of rider. It offers a range of accommodation to suit all budgets and is one of South Africa’s favourite mountain biking destinations. More info here.
Insect Science delivers eco-friendly pest-management solutions for the monitoring and control of insects that cause damage to commercial crops, stored food such as grains, and pests found in the home and garden. It has invested significantly in South African mountain biking through event and rider sponsorship and support. More info here.
