SA pick strong track team

Johannesburg - Track cycling Olympian Bernard Esterhuizen will head a strong 11-member South African team to the UCI Track World Cup series in Manchester, England in November.

Former world scratch event silver medallist Nolan Hoffman has also been included in the provisional team.

Cycling SA (CSA) said the team was selected in line with its strategy towards the 2014 Commonwealth Games and the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games.

The final selection would be made during a week-long track training camp between October 14 and 20, CSA said in a statement on Monday.

The team will depart for a further 10-day training camp in Newport, South Wales.

CSA said only cyclists that attend the October training camp and who post faster times than the selected squad would be considered for the world cup.

The squad features men’s sprint and endurance disciplines, while endurance track cyclist Maroejska Matthee is the only woman in the squad.

Provisional SA track cycling team:

Men:

Track sprint: Bernard Esterhuizen, Jeanne Nell, Jean Smith, Kyle Borchjes.

Track endurance: Nolan Hoffman, Kellan Gouveris, Evan Carstens, Theuns van der Bank, Marco Abrahams, Brandon Christians

Woman:

Track endurance: Maroejska Matthee