Nineteen-year-old Travis Stedman clinched the 25th edition of gruelling 97km route, finishing first at Africa’s enterprising Calabash in Nasrec on Sunday, 21 November.
Stedman crossed the finish line after 2 hours 13 minutes, followed by Marc Pritzen and Chris Jooste on second and third places respectively.
“It’s a very special win for me today, my very first elite win and I am very excited that I won the first one being hosted here at FNB Stadium. Thanks to my team and the spectators who kept cheering us up along the route,” said Stedman.
There has been a lot of confusion and concern around the outcome of the elite women’s race yesterday. Emma Pallant did cross the finish line first. Both she and the lead car made a wrong turn on the Kyalami race track, resulting in a much wider gap between Emma and the rest of the elite ladies. The confusion resulted in her being disqualified, allowing Ashleigh Moolman Pasio to be crowned the winner for elite ladies.
In the women’s race, second place was claimed by Maude Elaine le Roux, while Joanna van de Winkel crossed the line in third.
Acting City Manager Floyd Brink fired the starter’s gun to officially start the race at its new home at FNB Stadium.
“There are ventures that private business and the government can take independently, but partnering with Faces and 947 FM is a clear indication of how public private partnerships (PPP) can yield better results in delivering on mass programmes.
“This is one of the key strategic partnerships we have with private sector. For instance, next week from 25 to 28 the city will be hosting the Joburg Open an international golf tournament in partnership with the Sunshine Tour.
“On 03 and 04 December at the Kyalami the last partnership is with 83 Group who are the rights owners of the Kyalami 9 Hour an international motor sport concludes the year for the city as we highlight the importance of these partnerships and the importance of hosting such major strategic events,” said Brink.
He also mentioned that such partnerships allow the city to host mega and major events with international events that position Joburg and an events destination of choice.
Written by Luyanda Lunika
22/11/021