{"id":75456,"date":"2026-03-21T06:35:44","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T04:35:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/?p=75456"},"modified":"2026-03-21T19:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T17:06:21","slug":"gc-leaders-dominate-queen-stage-in-tough-conditions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/gc-leaders-dominate-queen-stage-in-tough-conditions\/","title":{"rendered":"GC Leaders Dominate Queen Stage in Tough Conditions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Both the overall leaders in the men\u2019s and women\u2019s elite categories showed why they are the strongest teams at the 2026 Absa Cape Epic during the Queen stage from Greyton to Stellenbosch on Friday. In the men\u2019s race, Italians Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto (Wilier-Vittoria) won their first stage of the week to extend their overall lead, while the overall leaders in the women\u2019s race, Candice Lill and Alessandra Keller (Th\u00f6mus Maxon Sabi Sabi), secured their fourth stage win of the week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo by Michael Chiaretta\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The overall leaders in both the men\u2019s and women\u2019s races of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic proved why they are at the top of the results page after a wet and muddy Stage 5 \u2018Queen Stage\u2019 from Greyton to Stellenbosch on Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the men\u2019s race Italians Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto (Wilier-Vittoria) finally got their first stage win despite having led the race overall for the last three days. The two finished the brutally hard 134km, with 2750m of climbing, in 5 hours 9 minutes and 51 seconds, with David Valero and Marc Stutzmann (Klimatiza Orbea) eight seconds back. The all-South African pairing of Matt Beers and Tristan Nortje (Toyota Specialized Imbuko) hung on for third to retain their second place in the overall classification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the shorter elite women\u2019s race – over 90km with 2150m of climbing –  South African champion Candice Lill and World Short Course Champion, Alessandra Keller (Th\u00f6mus Maxon Sabi Sabi), were unstoppable as they finished just over nine minutes ahead of Kate Courtney and Greta Seiwald (She Sends Foundation) and now lead the overall classification by 14 minutes, 18 seconds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Men\u2019s Race<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trailing the leaders by just 1 minute and 28 seconds, Beers and Nortje were aggressive early on as a crosswind on the open gravel roads played into the powerful Beers\u2019 strengths. At 14km, the two South Africans put in a strong attack in an attempt to break up the lead group. The attack was brought under control and it was eventually the 7C-Pedregal team of Luis Meija and Keyron Fonseca who managed to get a gap up the road just before halfway. On stage 1, Meija and Fonseca suffered major mechanical problems, including broken wheels, which forced them to ride two-up on one bike at times just to get to the finish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Matt Beers breaks away during stage 5 of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic. Photo by Nick Muzik\/Cape Epic

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But their time in the limelight was eventually snuffed out just after the Houw Hoek water point as the leading riders started upping the pace towards the big climbs of the day. As they have done all week, the two Italians rarely took the lead, simply following the attacks and minimising their energy expenditure. The race also included a compulsory portage section down the Gantouw Pass at 90km, which further split up the leading group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By the time the race had summited the long Lourensford climb and reached the Eden trails of Stellenbosch, three teams remained with former Olympic bronze medallist Valero setting a furious pace. But the Italians were eager to get a stage win, and as the group entered the final section of singletrack 3km from the finish, Avondetto darted ahead. It looked to be the race-winning move, but moments later, he crashed off the trail. Quickly remounting, the Italian finally rejoined his partner up front, and the two recovered to open up enough of a gap over the pursuers to have time to celebrate before the finish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The lead bunch during stage 5 of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic Photo by Nick Muzik\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe really wanted a win and it’s nice to get it on the Queen stage,\u201d said the 25-year-old Avondetto, a former World Under 23 champion. \u201cToday was quite challenging in the first 40 to 50km. We are now looking forward to the final two days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beers and Nortje, despite their best efforts, were unable to break the Italians but were happy to have hung on to second place overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe saw there was a crosswind and we threw in a haymaker,\u201d said Beers. \u201cI think it caught a few teams off guard and there was a lot of panic. But we were hoping to burn a few more teams. By the time we got down the Gantouw Pass, our legs were dying and we had to go full cockroach mode all the way home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After their second place, the Klimatiza Orbea team moved up to third overall, 5:59 behind the leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women\u2019s Race<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there was any doubt that Lill and Keller were the class act of this year\u2019s Absa Cape Epic, they certainly proved it on Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo by Michael Chiaretta\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After just 10km Seiwald was forced to stop when a stick got caught in her rear mechanism, and it was the signal for the Th\u00f6mus Maxon Sabi Sabi team to fly the coop. By halfway, they had already opened up an almost nine-minute gap as Seiwald struggled to keep pace with her World Marathon champion partner and the Chemchamp Honeycomb team of  Hayley Preen and Haley Smith (Chemchamp Honeycomb) closed in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo by Michael Chiaretta\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Lill and Keller maintained their pace in the difficult conditions, eventually crossing the finish line in Coetzenburg in 4:29.08.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a tough stage but we didn’t want to get involved in racing the She Sends Foundation team the whole way,\u201d said Lill. \u201cMy favourite way of racing is to race from the front, where we can set our own pace and rhythm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo by Michael Chiaretta\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile Seiwald admitted that she had struggled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKate was my hero today. She literally pushed me up every hill,\u201d the Italian said. \u201cI just didn’t have the legs today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Saturday, the penultimate stage is a relatively short 76km but with 2460m of climbing while the women\u2019s elite race will be raced over 62km with 1850m of climbing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Bird Entries<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Friday, organisers also announced that early bird entries for the 2027 Absa Cape Epic will open on Monday at 4pm for Full Access members and 5pm for general entries. Check out www-cape-epic.com<\/a> for all the details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RESULTS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elite Men Stage<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. WILIER-VITTORIA: Luca BRAIDOT & Simone AVONDETTO (5:09.51)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. KLIMATIZA ORBEA David Valero & Marc Stutzmann (5:09.59 | +8)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. TOYOTA SPECIALIZED IMBUKO: Matt BEERS & Tristan NORTJE (5:10.03 | +12)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. CANYON Luca SCHWARZBAUER & Sam GAZE (5:11.01 | +1:09)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 TOYOTA SPECIALIZED IMBUKO 2 Marco Joubert & Travis STEDMAN (5:12.56 | +3:04)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Simone AVONDETTO and Luca BRAIDOT win stage 5. Photo by Nick Muzik\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Elite Men GC<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1.  WILIER-VITTORIA: Luca BRAIDOT & Simone AVONDETTO (21:18.51)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. TOYOTA SPECIALIZED IMBUKO: Matthew BEERS & Tristan NORTJE (21:20.40 | +1:49)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. KLIMATIZA ORBEA: David VALERO SERRANO & Marc STUTZMANN (21:24.50 | +5:59)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. CANYON:Luca SCHWARZBAUER & Sam GAZE (21:25.10 | +6:19)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. BUFF-BH Wout ALLEMAN & Martin STOSEK (21:34.25 | +15:34)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elite Women Stage<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. TH\u00d6MUS MAXON SABI SABI: Candice LILL & Alessandra KELLER (4:29.08)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. SHE SENDS FOUNDATION: Kate COURTNEY & Greta SEIWALD (4:38.37 | +9)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. CHEMCHAMP HONEYCOMB Hayley PREEN & Hayley SMITH (4:40.40 | +11:32)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. MASSI ISB SPORT Monica CALEDERON & Tessa KORTEKAAS (4:43.32 | +14:24)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 TORPADO FSA KENDA Katazina SOSNA-PINELE & Giorgia MARCHET (4:44.43 | +15.34)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Alessandra KELLER and Candice LILL win stage 5 of the 2026. Photo by Nick Muzik\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Elite Women GC<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. TH\u00d6MUS MAXON SABI SABI: Candice LILL & Alessandra KELLER (18:48.02)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. SHE SENDS FOUNDATION: Kate COURTNEY & Greta SEIWALD (19:02.21 | +14:18)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.  CHEMCHAMP HONEYCOMB: Hayley PREEN & Haley SMITH (19:31.27 | +43:24)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4 TORPADO FSA KENDA Katazina SOSNA-PINELE & Giorgia MARCHET (19:39.07 | +51:04)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 SYMBTECH.NET<\/a> Margot MOSCHETTI Claudia PERETTI  (19:53.03 | 1:05.00)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SPECIAL JERSEYS GC<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toyota Mixed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. TEAM 69: Jenny RISSVEDS & Simon ANDREASSEN (25:01.41)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Absa African Men<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. TOYOTA SPECIALIZED IMBUKO: Matthew BEERS & Tristan NORTJE (21:20.40)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Absa African Women<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. SANI2C EFFICIENT INFINITI: Samantha SANDERS & Bianca HAW (19:59.45)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Open Women:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. JOY RIDE: Jennifer BURTNER & Callah ROBINSON (35:01.36)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Open Men:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. COLIBRI CYCLING: Eimantas GUDISKIS & Vladas JURKEVICIUS (24:10.11)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Great Grand Masters Men<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. OTB: Pieter MULLER & Corrie MULLER (31:21.41)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GIC Grand Masters Women<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. UAG EPIC: Martha KOEKEMOER & Jenny R\u00d6NNGREN (32:15.17)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GIC Grand Masters Men<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. ORBEA FOX FACTORY: Ibon ZUGASTI & Ernesto MENDOZA (24:49.43)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NTT Data Masters Women<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. IGLU THERAPY CHEMCHAMP RACING Juanita Rose MACKENZIE Rouxda GROBLER (31.19.04)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NTT Data Masters Men<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. CZECHROCKETS&SWISSDIESEL Pavel GONDA Tobias Luthi (23:40.55)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exxaro Women\u2019s Jersey<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. EXXARO MANGANESE LADIES 1: Tsholofelo NKOSI & Bontle PHEPISO (40:01.06)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exxaro Men\u2019s Jersey<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. FAIRTREE DP WORLD CANNONDALE 2: Ethan MICHAELS & Damon TERBLANCHE (25:25.20)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To follow the Absa Cape Epic action live, mountain biking fans are encouraged to tune into the Absa Cape Epic\u2019s live broadcast on the\u00a0Epic Series<\/a>\u00a0YouTube Channel\u00a0here<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo by Nick Muzik\/Cape Epic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Both the overall leaders in the men\u2019s and women\u2019s elite categories showed why they are the strongest teams at the 2026 Absa Cape Epic during the Queen stage from Greyton to Stellenbosch on Friday. In the men\u2019s race, Italians Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto (Wilier-Vittoria) won their first stage of the week to extend their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":75457,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[76,24],"featured_location":[],"class_list":["post-75456","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","tag-absa-cape-epic","tag-cape-epic"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75456","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=75456"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75456\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75470,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75456\/revisions\/75470"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75457"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75456"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75456"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75456"},{"taxonomy":"featured_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_location?post=75456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}