Cycling News and Race Results

Reinardt Janse van Rensburg, riding for the South African MTN Qhubeka Team, was able to out-fox former Tour winner Baden Cooke (SaxoBank Sungard) and the dominant rider of the Australian domestic season Steele Von Hoff (Genesys Wealth Advisors) in the sharp uphill dash to the finish that confronted the bunch with 700 metres to go.

“The finish was perfect for me. My teammates put me in the right position with 500 metres to go. This is my first win out of Africa, so I’m very happy,” Janse van Rensburg said.

“After the second KOM I knew it was going to be a bunch sprint. But the last few kays were quite steep which suited me. My teammates took me from 40th to 10th - it was perfect. The past couple of weeks we’ve been riding so well together, 100 percent commitment.

“It is a great result for us. We are a continental team wanting to go ProContinental next year and then hopefully going together into the big leagues.”

It was the second day of impressive riding from the South African under 23 time trial champion who was also with the final breakaway on yesterday’s stage from Whittlesea to Ballarat - eventually finishing sixth. He is the only rider to have made the top ten on both days of this year’s Jayco Herald Sun Tour despite not feeling 100 percent in the opener.

“Yesterday I was a bit jet-lagged. But I was feeling super today,” Janse van Rensburg said.

And whilst acknowledging that the international level riders were at the end of their racing year, he was very happy to have achieved the victory.

“It is the end of the season for the European based riders so they are probably not going so well, but they are world class athletes,” he said.

He did not dismiss his chances of doing even better as the Tour progresses.

“I’m feeling strong on the climbs. I’m not a climber, I’m actually a sprinter but if I can stay with them on the climbs I might have a chance,” the 17th place finisher from the under-23 road race at September’s world championships in Copenhagen said.

In the meantime Rhys Pollock retains the Jayco Herald Sun Tour lead despite today losing contact on a couple of occasions with the main bunch. He praised the work of his Drapac Cycling team mates for keeping him in the Jayco Yellow Leaders Jersey whilst again playing down any chance of them retaining it until Sunday’s finish.

“This is a bit of a surprise. Our intention wasn’t to keep the lead. We had a few teams trying to intimidate us into doing the work but we stuck to our guns,” Pollock said.

“Darren (Lapthorne) and Adam (Phelan) stayed with me and brought me back when I dropped back, although we never got behind by more than 200 metres. And Stuart Shaw was doing a great job up the front.

“When we got to the last 50km, we decided to have a go to keep the jersey,” Pollock said.

“I am not really sure that we can keep it though – we will see how we go. I have got some fantastic team mates who have shown today they can stay with me and bring me back.

“We will see what happens. It is just great for the team. Our team director will be sitting in the car sticking his chest out, I am sure.”

It would not have been an easy task for Pollock and his team, especially when the peloton had to lift the pace over the final half of the stage to reel in the big six minute lead that had been established by Chris Jongewaard (Budget Forklifts) and Kiwi Tim Gudsell (PureBlack Racing).

Jongewaard and Gudsell were brave but there was little reward on the general classification front, as a successful chase was always inevitable given that New Zealander was in the first day’s break and was sitting in ninth place overall, just 2:53 behind the lead and nearly eight minutes in front of most of the field.

Pollock’s overall lead remains as it was after day one - still 15 seconds to Nathan Haas (Genesys) and a further three to Saxobank’s Jonas Jorgensen. Janse Van Rensburg was the day’s improver, moving into fourth at 22 seconds.

There was some joy though for Jongewaard as he collected both the Cycle in Greater Shepparton Orange Jersey for the most aggressive rider on the stage and the Budget Forklifts Polka Dot King of the Mountains Jersey after taking over the lead in that classification as a result of his victory in the main climb of the day on the Perdisat Road between Maude and Lethbridge.

The day’s earlier climb, a short dash up Mount Buninyong just 5km after the spectacular start of the 140.6km stage in Sovereign Hill, produced an impressive 1-2-3 from some of Australia’s finest with Adam Hansen (Omega Pharma Lotto) taking it from Luke Roberts (SaxoBank Sungard) and Cameron Wurf (Mitchelton Australian National Team).

Jongewaard is not the only rider in possession of two jerseys after day two with Haas - perhaps the surprise packet of the race, still sporting both the Honda Green Sprinters Jersey and the State Government Victoria White Jersey for the leading under-23 rider.

“I definitely came here with the goal of trying to win the white jersey. Now it’s an achievable goal,” Haas said whilst acknowledging the dilemma created by having the second jersey.

“Now we can see this opportunity for later in the week, I have to save my legs for Arthurs Seat (on Saturday) and so I didn’t go for the sprints today. For the first one there were a few really going for it.”

That sprint, near Mount Egerton was won by Lapthorne from PureBlack’s James Williamson during their brief attempted escape from the bunch. The hotly contested third place points and time bonus that Haas was referring to went to Omega Pharma Lotto’s Jens Debrusschere.

Debrusschere also took third in the day’s second intermediate sprint at Meredith at the peak of the Jongewaard-Gudsell 75km breakaway.

Despite the pace at which the stage was ridden – the 140.6km being covered in 3hrs 24:34 at an average speed of over 40kph, all 98 riders who started the stage made it to the finish.

Friday’s third stage from Geelong (starting at Steampacket Gardens at 10.00am) to Drysdale (finishing in Princess Street) via Moriac, Lorne and along the Great Ocean Road is the 2011 Tour’s most picturesque.

The 173km journey features intermediate sprints at Deans Marsh and the Great Ocean Road Memorial Arch at Eastern View and two KOM summits at Benwerrin and the Eumeralla Scout Camp.