November 17, 2003
By Tshepiso Mogotsi
IT was a one-two for Team HSBC in Joburg's premier cycling event on Sunday as Ian McLeod clinched the Elite Men's title in the Pick 'n Pay 94.7 Cycle Challenge, closely followed by teammate Neal McDonald.
The local cyclist managed to outpace the field in the gruelling 180km ride for Elite Men, winning in a time of 4:31:45 and pocketing the R15 000 prize money.
The 23-year-old was elated at his win: "This is actually my first ever victory and a good race to win." McLeod was also crowned King of the Mountains.
The distance for the Elite Men's category was increased to 180km from last year's 94.7km to make it more challenging. The other races were over the 94.7km route.
The aftermath
In all, 22 845 cyclists managed to complete the challenge - both the 180km elite route and the 94.7km course. A total of R150 000 was given out as prize money across the different categories. Organisers described Sunday as "an overwhelming success".
The cycle challenge, according to event organisers, is officially the second largest mass participation cycling event in the world, behind Cape Town's Pick 'n Pay Argus cycle race.
The Elite Women's category, over 94.7km, provided a nail-biting finish; with the top three riders crossing the finishing line within wheel treads of one another. Elsa Karsten of Pretoria managed to scoop the title in a time of 2:47:28, pipping Cathy Carstens to the post. As for the R7 000 prize money, the 38-year-old said: "Cycling is a team sport so this prize money is not for me, but belongs to my team, Proline/Super CD team."
Race favourite and last year's winner Andriette Schoeman came in third.
The junior men's and junior women's races were won by John Lee Augustyn and Marike Cooks respectively. Herman Fouche and Elzette Visagie won the under 16 categories. Each received R1 650 in prize money.
Best teams were: Liberty (women's team) and HSBC (men's squad). Each team was awarded R5 000.
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