The adventure of Georg Egger and Lukas Baum with the yellow jersey of leaders could not have been shorter or less satisfactory. The reigning champions of the Cape Epic they got off the top of the general classification only one day after putting on the precious garment for the first time, since last year they made history by winning the race on the last day, after completing a sixth stage that was an ordeal for them in the form of constant breakdowns and mishaps. Demonstrating his enormous regularity to minimize problems in relation to his rivals, Nino Schurter and Andri Frischknecht regained the lead thanks to their second position, which leaves a red-hot scenario for the final battle with arrival in Val de Vie: the The first three couples in the general play the title separated by five minutes.
In the second place some Matt Beers and Christopher Blevins who won the stage again this Saturday, so no one will take away the honor of being the top scorers in this edition of the South African round no matter what. A South African and American are separated 1:32 from the lead, while Egger and Baum will take the start at 5:32. From there, almost half an hour of loss for the rest of the couples. A whole world. However, for one of those privileged positions the Spanish duo formed by Roberto Bou and Miguel Muñoz (Cannondale VAS), which thanks to its fourth position in the stage consolidate as sixth from the general, less than 4 ‘behind Seewald and Stosek who close the top-5.
They did not have the same luck David Valero and Pablo Rodríguez, who had been going through an ordeal for days. As his team assured on social networks, today they decided to abandon the race due to the stomach problems that the man from Baza had been suffering for days. “It has been a very complicated decision but so it is not worth continuing. We return to Spain to continue with the preparation focused on the XCO World Cup”, confirmed the BH Coloma Team. And it is that the day, without a doubt, was one of those of true hell. The copious rain muddied a large part of the route, which translated into extremely tough conditions that the Scott-SRAM and Toyota-Specialized-NinetyOne pairs especially took advantage of.
In the female category, third consecutive victory for the pleasant surprise of this Cape, some Kim Le Court and Vera Looser They will face the last day with their homework practically done: almost half an hour ahead of their pursuers (25:12 against Wakefield and Lill, and 27:20 against Gómez and Nash). What an end awaits us…
Classification Cape Epic (M) | General
Classification Cape Epic (F) | General
