Celliers is cycling’s time-trial champion

CYCLIST Jacques Celliers braved windy conditions to net the title of national time-trial champion in a race that included 60 cyclists on Sunday morning.

Cilliers from Prowealth won the elite category in the race, while Ermin van Wyk from Cycletec Radiowave was first to cross the line in the junior men’s category. Mike Swanepoel from Cycology Cycles was the champion in the veterans’ category, while Jaco Blaauw (Prowealth) scooped the under-16 boys section.Fred Krenz was the masters champion for men, while Frank Adrian (Cycology Cycles) took the under-14 boys title.Till Drobisch was the winner for the under-12 boys, while Pascall Markgraff collected the under-10 boys title.Charmaine Shannon from Desert Logistics won the elite women’s race, with top junior Heletje van Staden (Hochland Engen) landing the junior women’s title.Astrid Helm was the winner among the veteran women, while Annika van der Vaart was named as the under-14 girls winner as Vera Adrian grabbed the under-12 girls first spot.The course was tailor-made for strong, smooth riders and pacing played a big role as the second half of the race would be into the wind.The elite riders rode 40 km while the other age-group categories raced over 30 and 20 km courses.The race got under way at 08h00 sharp with individual riders leaving at 30-second intervals.Time trials differ significantly from road racing as riders are not allowed to slipstream or draught another rider, hence the half-minute intervals to separate competitors.A big prize purse, sponsored by Prime Press, was up for grabs.With a few riders missing their allocated start times, most notably Ermin van Wyk, the stage was set for some upsets.Mannie Heymans had made it back to Windhoek for the event and there was a big battle between him and Cilliers.The Veterans category was a big showdown between the likes of Mike Swanepoel and Johnny Truter, while visitors like Juergen Goldhofer provided good results.After the recent success in the SA under-16 tour, Jan-Hendrik Verdoes and Jaco Blaauw showed each other no mercy and top-class racing emerged as the race progressed.The Namibian Cycling Federation has thanked Prime Press for their support and Windhoek Pedal Power for running the event.Mike Swanepoel from Cycology Cycles was the champion in the veterans’ category, while Jaco Blaauw (Prowealth) scooped the under-16 boys section.Fred Krenz was the masters champion for men, while Frank Adrian (Cycology Cycles) took the under-14 boys title.Till Drobisch was the winner for the under-12 boys, while Pascall Markgraff collected the under-10 boys title.Charmaine Shannon from Desert Logistics won the elite women’s race, with top junior Heletje van Staden (Hochland Engen) landing the junior women’s title.Astrid Helm was the winner among the veteran women, while Annika van der Vaart was named as the under-14 girls winner as Vera Adrian grabbed the under-12 girls first spot.The course was tailor-made for strong, smooth riders and pacing played a big role as the second half of the race would be into the wind.The elite riders rode 40 km while the other age-group categories raced over 30 and 20 km courses.The race got under way at 08h00 sharp with individual riders leaving at 30-second intervals.Time trials differ significantly from road racing as riders are not allowed to slipstream or draught another rider, hence the half-minute intervals to separate competitors.A big prize purse, sponsored by Prime Press, was up for grabs.With a few riders missing their allocated start times, most notably Ermin van Wyk, the stage was set for some upsets.Mannie Heymans had made it back to Windhoek for the event and there was a big battle between him and Cilliers.The Veterans category was a big showdown between the likes of Mike Swanepoel and Johnny Truter, while visitors like Juergen Goldhofer provided good results.After the recent success in the SA under-16 tour, Jan-Hendrik Verdoes and Jaco Blaauw showed each other no mercy and top-class racing emerged as the race progressed.The Namibian Cycling Federation has thanked Prime Press for their support and Windhoek Pedal Power for running the event.