Cycling News and Race Results

Brandon Stewart and Jacques Rossouw came good on the first of the climbing stages when they snatched the win from overall leaders Kevin Evans and David George on day four of the nine-day Old Mutual joBerg2c on Monday.

Returning to the 2012 Absa Cape Epic for the ninth time, having participated in all the events to date, is Brandon Stewart (30) of KwaZulu-Natal, who will be taking part this year with Jacques Rossouw (30) from Cape Town. Rossouw has completed two Absa Cape Epic’s before and together they have entered the race as team Fedgroup Itec Connect.

The fact that Jacques Rossouw (Team Fedgroup-Itec Connect) has made a comeback to pro-elite racing, can be considered to be one of the best things that has happened to South African mountain biking during the past few years.

Kevin Evans (Nedbank 360Life) fended off strong challenges from Jacques Rossouw (FedGroup-Itec Connect) and the waterlogged course itself to take his second win in the 80km Extreme mountain bike race at Addo just outside Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

By winning the MTN Barberton ultra-marathon on Saturday (28 January), Jacques Rossouw (Team FedGroup-Itec Connect) at long last completed a hat trick of victories. Kevin Evans (Nedbank360Life) was second and Jacques Janse van Rensburg (MTN-Qhubeka) third.

Seven years almost to the day after his last major marathon victory, Jacques Rossouw (FEDGROUP – ITEC Connect) made a triumphant return when he claimed a dominant victory over a strong field at the MTN South African National Mountain Bike Series Ultra-marathon in Barberton at the weekend.

A year largely filled with uncertainty will end with stability and focus for Brandon Stewart and Jacques Rossouw, two of South Africa’s top marathon mountain bike racers, following the launch of Team FEDGROUP – ITEC Connect at the weekend.

Kevin Evans continued his reign as the king of the MTN Crater Cruise marathon mountain bike race in Parys, Free State on Saturday, when he became the first three-time winner of South Africa’s richest one-day mountain bike race.

If Jacques Rossouw (Itec Connect-Kathea) should win the MTN Ride Crater Cruise ultra-marathon mountain-bike race in Parys tomorrow, he should thank his wife, Johanna. She is the one who convinced him to resume his career as a mountain-bike professional.