{"id":75357,"date":"2026-03-12T12:02:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T10:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/?p=75357"},"modified":"2026-03-13T18:39:57","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T16:39:57","slug":"moir-defends-his-songo-info-champions-race-title-neff-wins-on-debut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/moir-defends-his-songo-info-champions-race-title-neff-wins-on-debut\/","title":{"rendered":"Moir Defends his songo.info Champions Race Title, Neff Wins on Debut"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Luke Moir and Jolanda Neff were crowned the king and queen of the songo.info Champions Race on Wednesday, 11 March. The late afternoon action took place in scorching temperatures, and the racing matched the mercury with Cannondale Factory Racing taking the fight to the South Africans, Moir and Tyler Jacobs, in the men\u2019s and women\u2019s events. The Mondraker Factory Racing XC man was able to use his songo.info Champions Race experience to outfox and outclimb Charlie Aldridge and Luca Martin to defend the title he won in 2025. While the 2020 Olympic Gold Medallist showed her class, and held off South Africa\u2019s young XCC star, Jacobs, and Buff BH\u2019s XCM specialist, Rosa van Doorn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Jolanda Neff (Cannondale Factory Racing | Switzerland) and Luke Moir (Mondraker Factory Racing XC | South Africa) were crowned champions of the 2026 songo.info Champions Race. Photo by Diwan Krige.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The 2026 songo.info Champions Race got underway with an all-comers Open Category event, which was won by under-17 rising star Remi Vermaak, and an electrifying E-Bike race, which saw Michard Meets take the men\u2019s category win, while Jess Kroon and Ciska Turner crossed the finish line together to share the women\u2019s category victory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The songo.info Champions Race showcases both the charity and the spirit of the Kayamandi community. Supported by global asset manager Ninety One, songo.info delivers education, sport, and life-skills programmes to 150 children from the historically disadvantaged township outside Stellenbosch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tyler Jacobs (leading) took the fight to Jolanda Neff, but could not hold off the Swiss Olympic Champion. Photo by Sam Clark.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By bringing international and local mountain biking stars and passionate cycling fans into Kayamandi, the race shines a spotlight on the importance of the charity\u2019s work. The energy around the event is infectious and marks the final build-up to the Absa Cape Epic. This year\u2019s 12th edition also benefited from the Epic\u2019s photography, video, and social media teams, helping share songo.info\u2019s story with a global audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the intermission between races, the IRONMAN Foundation presented songo.info with new mountain and balance bikes. Their donation of 30 bikes to songo.info and another 30 to the Anna Foundation sparked instant excitement among the children. Soon after, an impromptu ride around the Kayamandi Sports Fields, led by Christoph Sauser and programme manager Sipho Madolo, turned the moment into pure celebration, even on an afternoon already filled with smiles and laughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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EF Education Easy-Post\u0092s Lachlan Morton was one of the global cycling superstars on the start line of the 2026 songo.info Champions Race. Photo by Sam Clark.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With the bikes handed over, it was time to resume the racing, with the Elite Women\u2019s showdown. Neff, Jacobs, and Van Doorn were up against a stacked field, which also included Ana Santos, Margot Moschetti, Vera Looser, Andrea Schoffman, and Faranak Partoazar. A fast start by Neff, her Cannondale Factory Racing teammate, Santos, as well as Jacobs, Van Doorn, Looser, and Moschetti, quickly splintered the field. On each of the first 3 laps, another of these favourites slipped from contention until only the eventual podium finishers were left racing for victory. The former World and European cross-country champion simply had another gear for the final lap, however, and distanced Jacobs and Van Doorn to seize the title.

\u201cI was absolutely loving it,\u201d Neff smiled. \u201cIt\u2019s such a special experience, there\u2019s nothing like this anywhere else in the world. We were racing through the community, and all the people were so happy and excited. I\u2019ve never done something like this before, and it was so much fun!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Michard Meets taking to the air en route to victory in the E-Bike Champions Race. Photo by Sam Clark.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Moir also thoroughly enjoyed his songo.info Champions Race experience. \u201cBefore the race, I said to Sam [Gaze] we need to make a plan because Cannondale [Factory Racing] had so much strength in depth,\u201d the double champion noted. \u201cIt worked out well initially as Sam and I were able to get away with Charlie [Aldridge], Luca [Martin], Cole [Punchard], and Michael [Foster]. But then Sam had an issue on the penultimate lap. On the last lap, I went all in on the tar climb, sprinting as hard as I could, to get into the downhill through the houses first. Once I had that prime position on the trail, I knew it would be really hard for anyone to come around me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moir crossed the line seconds ahead of Aldridge, Martin, and Foster, with Punchard finishing 20 seconds back in fifth. Sam Gaze endured a race-ending mechanical on the second-to-last lap, putting him out of the running for a podium finish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The IRONMAN Foundation, along with the Anna Foundation and the Absa Cape Epic raised funds for songo.info and donated a number of new balance and mountain bikes to the charity. Photo by Sam Clark.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

songo.info and the mountain biking community in general\u2019s attention now turns to the Absa Cape Epic. Starting on Sunday, 15 March, the 22nd<\/sup> edition of the world\u2019s biggest mountain bike stage race features the longest route in years, with three stages over 100 kilometres, including a 140-kilometre transition stage from Montagu to Greyton. The charity will be represented by four official teams. Sipho Madolo races alongside, songo.info\u2019s primary sponsor, Thabo Khojane, the Managing Director of Niney One South Africa. Lutho Barnes and Liyema Madolo, as well as Zizo Tshingana and Lakhanya Sikhobongwana, race in the Exxaro Jersey competition for young riders from historically disadvantaged communities. Christoph Sauser, meanwhile, teams up with Craig Uria for team SONGO-GIC-NINETY ONE. They will be targeting the NTT Masters\u2019 title over the eight days of the race. Fiends of songo.info, Andr\u00e9 Pinto and Marco Carvalho will also be representing the charity and helping with the fundraising initiative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2026 songo.info Champions Race Women\u0092s Elite Podium (from left to right): Tyler Jacobs, Jolanda Neff, and Rosa van Doorn. Photo by Diwan Krige.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The focus of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic is to raise funds to build an additional classroom at the songo.info clubhouse. GIC has already graciously committed to a sizable donation, but the charity needs to raise more money to erect and equip the prefabricated classroom. This classroom, which will stand next to the one Ninety One sponsored in 2025, will enable songo.info to welcome 175 children through the charity\u2019s doors every school day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To find out more about the work the charity does, visit www.songo.info<\/a>, or click here<\/a> to donate to the classroom fundraising campaign on GivenGain. To stay updated on the fortunes of the songo.info teams at the 2026 Absa Cape Epic, follow @songoinfo<\/a> on Instagram or like the songo.info<\/a> Facebook page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2026 songo.info Champions Race Men\u0092s Elite Podium (from left to right): Christoph Sauser (songo.info founder), Charlie Aldridge, Luke Moir, Luca Martin, Sipho Madolo (songo.info Programme Manager). Photo by Diwan Krige.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

2026 songo.info Champions Race Results<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elite Women’s Results:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Jolanda Neff: Cannondale Factory Racing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Tyler Jacobs: Liv Factory Racing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Rosa van Doorn: Buff BH<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Ana Santos: Cannondale Factory Racing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Vera Looser: Efficient Infiniti Insure<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Elite Men’s Results:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Luke Moir: Mondraker Factory Racing XC<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Charlie Aldridge: Cannondale Factory Racing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. Luca Martin: Cannondale Factory Racing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    4. Michael Foster: Ford Prime Bunch<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    5. Cole Punchard: Cannondale Factory Racing<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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      Luke Moir and Jolanda Neff were crowned the king and queen of the songo.info Champions Race on Wednesday, 11 March. The late afternoon action took place in scorching temperatures, and the racing matched the mercury with Cannondale Factory Racing taking the fight to the South Africans, Moir and Tyler Jacobs, in the men\u2019s and women\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":75358,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[2295,454],"featured_location":[338],"class_list":["post-75357","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","tag-song-info","tag-songo","featured_location-bottom-row"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75357","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75357"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75357\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75366,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75357\/revisions\/75366"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75358"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75357"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75357"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75357"},{"taxonomy":"featured_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_location?post=75357"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}