![\"ccs-62657-0-39517800-1436345901.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.bikehub.co.za\/production\/uploads\/2023\/02\/ccs-62657-0-39517800-1436345901-1.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/a><\/p>\nTrack star Jean Smith, hopes to turn out great sprint as well as endurance results at the Durban Inter-Provincials and Grand Prix taking place at Cyril Geoghegan Cycling Track on 10 and 11 July. \u00a9 Craig Dutton\/pics2go.co.za<\/span><\/p>\n The award-winning vineyard in the Western Cape will be providing bottles of sparkling wine for the winners of the Grand Prix. \u201cThis is fantastic, because it takes it all back to the old traditions of a real Grand Prix in other sports, with the winners all receiving champagne on the podiums,\u201d said Bodin.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve had teams confirmed from the Western Cape, Free State, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. It\u2019s awesome to see that there is a team from the Free State coming, despite the province not having their own track.<\/p>\n \u201cThere has been a great entry in the Elite category, with some really good riders competing, as well as the Masters\u2019 categories.\u201d<\/p>\n Names to look out for this weekend, to name a few, would be Esterhuizen, Jean Smith and Team Europcar\u2019s Ryan Gibbons.<\/p>\n \u201cThe track has just been cleaned, and its all coming on very well, so we\u2019re all systems go,\u201d concluded Bodin.<\/p>\n South African sprint sensation, Jean Smith, arrives in Durban on Friday, and is feeling good ahead of the weekend. \u201cI\u2019m looking forward to racing this weekend, it\u2019s going to be a good one,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Smith, who is a well-known track cycling sprinter, has been focusing more on endurance riding of late. \u201cIn terms of preparation, I\u2019ve spent a bit more time on the road and in the gym to improve my strength and endurance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Team Europcar rider, Ryan Gibbons, is not too nervous about this weekend\u2019s events, but is rather interested to see how the races unfold. \u201cTo be honest I\u2019m a bit of a track novice, I only really started on the track last year. I competed in November and didn\u2019t even have a bike, the first time I got on a track bike was for the event,\u201d said Gibbons.<\/p>\n Gibbons mentioned that he has been using a borrowed bike, and learning a lot about track cycling as he goes along. \u201cI have received lots of help from Martin van Wyk, whose been helping me out with gearing and all of that, which has made a huge difference,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing a road cyclist, I\u2019m fairly comfortable with the longer distances, but I\u2019ve been entered by my province as a sprinter. I try to make it onto the track at least twice a week,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n With many accolades to his individual as well as team name this road season, including taking the 2015 aQuelle Tour Durban victory, Gibbons also received four medals in the 2015 South African Track Championships earlier this year.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m really enjoying track cycling, it adds something new to my cycling abilities and I feel will ultimately help me out with other variables on the road. It\u2019s never a bad thing to be a bit more versatile, and many great road cyclists started out on a track bike.\u201d<\/p>\n The 2015 Durban Interprovincial event will take place on Friday 10 July from 6-8pm, and the 2015 Durban Grand Prix will take place on 11 July, from 9am-4pm.<\/p>\n