The 23-year-old Rabie ended second overall on the General Classification, two minutes and nine seconds behind the winner, Britain’s Kristian House of Team Rapha Condor Sharp. Rabie also finished tie on points for the most consistent top daily finisher and he was also the top African rider.
The inaugural Tour of South Africa, which started in Pretoria and ended in Paarl, was granted a 2.2 grading from the International Cycling Union, ensuring a high international profile, which attracted a total of 19 teams from 14 different countries, including some strong European outfits.
The eight-day seven-stage race covered a total distance of 1066km with daily TV coverage, including live coverage of Stages 1, 2 and 7.
Rabie made his intentions clear on Stage 3 when he finished second on the stage into Port Elizabeth. After that stage, he was in a group of 10 riders that were equal second on the General Classification behind House, who had gained a lead of more than two minutes when he broke clear on his own on to win Stage 1.
With that big a lead, it was always going to be tough to wrest the leader’s Yellow Jersey from House. But there was no shortage of attempts and Rabie collected fourth place on Stage 4 from Bloukrans to George to stay within striking distance.
But it was on the uphill finish on the tough Stage 6 in Stellenbosch that proved decisive for Rabie. He finished second on the stage, in the process putting some time between himself and his rivals, which moved him up to second overall – alone. The gruelling climbs and high temperatures (touching 40 degrees Celsius) offered up a true test, which Rabie passed with an A-plus, confirming his class and his ability to perform under pressure.
“I planned to do well on General Classification, but because it was a brand new race and we weren’t sure of the strength of the overseas teams, I decided to ride a bit easier over the first few stages in order to be strong at the end,” said Rabie, who says he definitely got stronger towards the end.
“I felt like I was riding into good form through the tour. I actually felt good on all the stages. Our decision to start conservatively might have cost us in the end because that’s when House got the lead, but I came away satisfied with my performance and am looking forward to the Tour of Morocco and Tour of Korea coming up in the next few weeks.”
While Rabie was the standout rider on Team Bonitas, his success wouldn’t have been possible without the backing of his teammates – Malcolm Lange, Tyler Day, Waylon Woolcock, Neil MacDonald and Hanco Kachelhoffer – who played a pivotal role in protecting him and ensuring he reached the business end of each stage as fresh as possible.
“They certainly were very unselfish and rode to protect me right to the end. Even Tyler, on the last stage, which suited him perfectly, dropped back to help pace me back to the front when I punctured quite late in the stage. The whole team really did a great job.”
“I’m very pleased with the team’s performance,” beamed Lange, Team Bonitas owner and captain. “It was a tough week and it was good to be able to prove that we aren’t just a team that can win 100km races.
“We went in conservatively and emerged with a very good result. It bodes well for Team Bonitas, which this year became a Continental team, opening up opportunities for us to race more international races and tours. With Tyler finishing high up on Stage 1 and getting the Best Young Rider’s jersey, there wasn’t a day we didn’t have a Team Bonitas rider featured at the podium ceremony,” explained Lange.
“Johann is a great talent and I believe this great result will give him an important confidence boost. Physiologically, he’s got the attributes to be world class. I believe we caught a glimpse of that at the Tour of South Africa.”
