Big cycling names to enter for Tour de Limpopo

Polokwane cycling enthusiasts can expect to see some big names in action when the inaugural Tour de Limpopo commences at the old Peter Mokaba Stadium on Monday.
Tour de Limpopo is a four-stage race with a UCI 2.2 rating in which the riders head to Tzaneen for three nights before heading back to Polokwane to finish the race at the stadium on Thursday.
According to Cycling South Africa (CSA) Public Relations and Communications Officer, Mylene Paynter teams to look out for are Zambian team First Quantum Pro Cycling and South Africa’s ProTouch Pro Cycling, among the 20 local and international professional cycling teams eagerly anticipating the brand new addition to the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Africa tour calendar.
First Quantum Pro Cycling’s Ryan Ellis in a press release said that the race can only grow on the African continent. “I was ecstatic when I heard that the Tour de Limpopo would be a UCI 2.2 race. If it wasn’t for this race, we’d have had to travel to North Africa to gain the same racing exposure. It’s a great step forward for South African racing,” he said.
Ellis first turned professional as a junior attachment to South African road team House of Paint in 2009. After competing for four years in road and mountain bike races, he took a break from the sport to pursue a degree in journalism. In 2016, he returned to his home of Zambia to continue in professional cycling. Ellis finished in seventh place at the 2017 African Continental Championships.
With podium places and race victories in most of their races already this season, South African team ProTouch Pro Cycling are relishing the opportunity to race in a top ranked competition against some new teams and unfamiliar riders. Team Manager Tony Harding said that being in the mix daily will take care of results.
“Having a UCI event in South Africa is a great opportunity, not only for domestic teams to test themselves against international competition but also to gain some important UCI points which helps towards qualifying riders for UCI World Championships,” Harding explained, adding that the more points their riders can garner, the more marketable they make themselves in Europe.
Hailing from East London, Reynard Butler moved to Johannesburg to pursue a career in professional cycling and is a sprinter and occasional climber. His greatest achievement was two stage wins in the Tour of Melez Zenawi (Ethiopia) in 2016. This season Butler has scooped victories in the popular South African one-day races; Emperors Classic, Dis-Chem Ride for Sight and Berg and Dal Classic.
Other seasoned riders in the South African team are Jayde Julius, Gustav Basson, Myles van Musschenbroek, James Fourie and Mitchell Eliot.
For more information visit www.tourdelimpopo.co.za.

Story: RC Myburgh
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