The 1999 Abraxas Technologies SA Triathlon Championships will be held at Club Mykonos, in Langebaan, on Saturday 6 March. The race, which is an Olympic qualifier, promises to attract over 350 South African and several international athletes.
The field will include the winners of the regional qualifiers, which have been held in the major provinces over the past two months. Top male SA contenders this year include cyclists Lieuwe Boonstra and Conrad Stoltz, challenged on the run by Greg van Holdt, Claude Eksteen and Glen Gore, who starts as favourite after winning last year`s championships at Midmar Dam. A competitive female field includes Kim Carter, Lizel Moore, Dominique Donner, Caroline Koll and Samantha Spong. These athletes, now aiming for Olympic qualifiers, will converge on the Cape for the 1.5km swim, 40km cycle, 10km run format.
Being an International Triathlon Union event, a triathlon first for South Africa, the race is also attracting great interest from athletes in the UK, US, Mexico and the Netherlands, some of whom have already entered. One British team, under coach, Bill Black, is already in Stellenbosch gearing up for the event.
Organised by the Evox Triathlon Club, the Abraxas Technologies SA Triathlon Championships falls under the auspices of Triathlon South Africa and the Western Province Triathlon Association. The race, in its fifteenth consecutive year, has a new major sponsor, the IT company, Abraxas Technologies. Part of their sponsorship includes the handling of technical and logistical aspects of results and data capturing, which will "significantly enhance the efficiency and professional running of the event," says Sharon Cripps, Marketing Manager of Abraxas.
The route of the race, according to Colin Williamson, Event Organiser and Chairman of Evox Triathlon Club, will take advantage of the setting of the Greek-style resort town on the West Coast. "With the sea in the background, the three disciplines are very spectator friendly as most of the race can be watched from any one point. The event will undoubtedly be the highlight of the SA season for short course athletes. The route is very similar to those used on the ITU World Cup circuit and should the wind pick up, will give the stronger cyclists an opportunity of putting their strength to good use.
"The race starts with a two-lap, 1.5km swim in the harbour around the anchored yachts. There`s a novel turn around point when athletes swim under the large hulls of the Tropica catamaran, moored in the clean, calm harbour," says Williamson.
The second stage, a challenging and technical bike stage made up of three laps of just over 13km each, has a steep climb of about 800m on every lap, and is, according to Williamson, "like a flight of stairs towards the top". Looking forward to the challenge is SA Olympic squad cyclist, Boonstra, who is hoping to do well as "the course is perfect for the strong cyclist". The final stretch is a five multi-lap run of 2km each.
Prize money will be awarded to Elite athletes only, and gold, silver and bronze medals will go to the top three finishers of each age group. In addition to the Elite group, there are 13 age categories which can be entered; Age Groupers 20 - 24, 25 - 29, 30 - 34, 35 - 39, 40 - 44, 45 - 49, 50 - 54, 55 - 59, 60 +, Junior A (17 - 19), Junior B (14 - 16), Junior C (11 - 13) and Junior D (10 years and under).
The entire weekend will be arranged around activities pertaining to the race, including a pre-event dinner, race briefing, prize giving, post-race party and so forth. The grand prize is a Cube bike frame. Paul Valstar, television commentator of the Energade series, will be present to give his views throughout the event, which will be screened on "Old Mutual`s World of Endurance" in the weeks following the race.
Entries must reach Evox Triathlon Club by Friday, 26 February. Entry forms are available on the website. All pre-entries will receive a race pack, including a T-shirt and sponsors` hamper, upon registration on Friday 5 March. For any race queries, visit the website on www.triathlon.co.za or contact Cheryl on (021) 559 1072 / 082 852 6338 or Colin Williamson on (021) 503-1146 (w), 557-0336 (h) or colwill@mweb.co.za.
For accommodation enquiries, please call Mariaan on (022) 722-2101 at Club Mykonos or access the website at www.clubmykonos.co.za.
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