Lisa Isaacs
NOLAN Hoffman successfully defended his elite men’s title in a hotly contested 2015 Cape Town Cycle Tour yesterday, while Lynette Burger won the women’s championship in the shortened 47km race.
Clinching victory in a thrilling finish in 1hr 1min 49sec, a breathless Hoffman described his win as “incredible”. He is the third rider in the 38-year history of the race to successfully defend the men’s title.
“It was only 47km, but it was the hardest 47km. There was no place to recover. I’m proud of the way the guys rode today – they stuck to the tactic and executed it to perfection. My teammates were fantastic,” he said.
Burger edged out last year’s elite women’s champion, Cherise Stander, in 1:17.52. Burger, a winner of multiple South African track titles and also the South African and Continental Road Champion in 2009, recently came out of retirement.
The Krugersdorp local dedicated her win to her family and nine-month-old son Dale.
“It is unbelievable to win,” a stunned Burger said.
“We went fast and hard from the start. We were only a team of three today, but my teammates set up the win for me perfectly.”