Impey spearheads SA at road world champs

Cape Town - Thirteen riders will represent South Africa at the 2017 UCI Road World Championships in Bergen, Norway, starting on Sunday, according to the SASCOC website.

The championships continue through to next Sunday.

The blue-ribbon event will kick off with the team time trial, where competitors compete as part of their trade team. Thereafter, for the individual time trial and the road races, riders will participate in their national colours.

The time trial is scheduled to take place in Bergen and surrounding areas, with the Men’s Elite race finishing atop Mount Fløyen. It will be the first time that a World Championship time trial finishes on top of a mountain.

The climb will be brutal, on a 3.4km stretch with an average gradient of 9.1%.

The road races will start in Øygarden and riders and spectators alike will celebrate the Norwegian coastal culture. The highlight of the race is the climb up ‘Salmon Hill’ towards Mount Ulriken.

Five riders - Heidi Dalton, Jaco Venter, Nicholas Dlamini, Stefan de Bod and Tiffany Keep - have withdrawn from the team due to personal reasons.

Cycling South Africa Road commission director, Bosseau Boshoff, said: ‘The World Championship route will suit a rider like Daryl Impey - it’s not a climber’s course, but more of a sprinter’s course.

‘When speaking to Robbie Hunter, he explained that the finish is likely to see a big group sprint, as the climbs are not difficult enough to split the race open.

‘We have a strong team here, and every person that we’ve selected will perform well on this type of course.’

National team

Elite men
Daryl Impey
Reinardt Janse van Rensburg
Willie Smit

Under-23
Morne van Niekerk

Elite women
Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio
Heidi Dalton
Chane Jonker

Junior men
Devin Shortt
Ryan Terry
Jason Oosthuizen

Junior women
Ashleigh Parsons
Elne Owen
Nadia van Niekerk