Hunter sprints to Argus win in Cape Town

CAPE TOWN – The powerful Team Barloworld completed a notable double in Cape Town yesterday when they got sprinter Robert Hunter to the finish line at Green Point Stadium to win the Argus race in record time after wrapping up the honours in the Giro del Capo international five-day stage race on Saturday.

The 105-man peloton was virtually together for most of the distance as teams Barloworld and Neotel took charge at the front to ensure there were no significant breakaways which the ultra-fast pace of the race inhibited in any case with the speed averaging 45km/h. With so many sprinters in the pack, including those of the national teams of Belgium, Denmark, Ireland and Norway, the crucial break for the line got under way early, around 5km from the finish.As the teams fought for position in the final straight there was a moment of chaos as a Danish rider threw his arms into the air when he mistook the finish line with 200m still to go.Barloworld’s Felix Cardenas and Chris Froome were quick to take advantage of this and drove past on the one side to lead in Hunter for the victory with Neotel’s Nolan Hoffmann just edging out MTN’s Malcolm Lange on the other for second.Hunter, who was the 2007 winner, set a new record of two hours 27 minutes 30 seconds for the race and said the conditions had been perfect for him.A huge entry numbering over 39 000 cyclists from all walks of life around the country and overseas had almost perfect conditions for the 109km classic around the Cape Peninsula.The women’s event saw two young riders having the race of their lives.Cherisse Taylor (MTN) surprised everyone to come first in 2:52:50 with Lynette Burger (Cyclelab Toyota) on her back wheel followed by five-times winner, Anriette Schoeman (Proline).Taylor, who is only 18 and from Pretoria, was second last year and became the youngest professional to have won the Argus Tour while it was a first podium finish for Burger Cape Argus Pick ‘n Pay Cycle Tour (RSA rider unless stated) Men, Elite: 1 Robert Hunter (Barloworld) 2 hrs 27 mins 30 secs (new course record), 2 Nolan Hoffmann (Team Neotel), 3 Malcolm Lange (MTN Energade), 4 Christoff van Heerden (Konica Minolta), 5 Jaco Venter (Neotel), 6 Ciaran Power (IRL, Pezula), 7 Arran Brown (House of Paint), 8 Jens-Erik Madsen (DEN, Danish track team), 9 Eijo Keisse (BEL, Belgian track team), 10 Dennis van Niekerk (Konica Minolta) Women, Elite: 1 Cherisse Taylor (MTN) 2:50:52, 2 Lynette Burger (Cyclelab Toyota), 3 Anriette Schoeman (Proline), 4 Chrissie Viljoen (Proline), 5 Jennie Stenerhag (Therme Skincare), 6 Yolandi du Toit (MTN), 7 Robyn de Groot (Proline), 8 Ashleigh Moolman, 9 Joanna Hotchkiss, 10 Frances Barnard – News 24With so many sprinters in the pack, including those of the national teams of Belgium, Denmark, Ireland and Norway, the crucial break for the line got under way early, around 5km from the finish.As the teams fought for position in the final straight there was a moment of chaos as a Danish rider threw his arms into the air when he mistook the finish line with 200m still to go.Barloworld’s Felix Cardenas and Chris Froome were quick to take advantage of this and drove past on the one side to lead in Hunter for the victory with Neotel’s Nolan Hoffmann just edging out MTN’s Malcolm Lange on the other for second.Hunter, who was the 2007 winner, set a new record of two hours 27 minutes 30 seconds for the race and said the conditions had been perfect for him.A huge entry numbering over 39 000 cyclists from all walks of life around the country and overseas had almost perfect conditions for the 109km classic around the Cape Peninsula.The women’s event saw two young riders having the race of their lives.Cherisse Taylor (MTN) surprised everyone to come first in 2:52:50 with Lynette Burger (Cyclelab Toyota) on her back wheel followed by five-times winner, Anriette Schoeman (Proline).Taylor, who is only 18 and from Pretoria, was second last year and became the youngest professional to have won the Argus Tour while it was a first podium finish for Burger Cape Argus Pick ‘n Pay Cycle Tour (RSA rider unless stated) Men, Elite: 1 Robert Hunter (Barloworld) 2 hrs 27 mins 30 secs (new course record), 2 Nolan Hoffmann (Team Neotel), 3 Malcolm Lange (MTN Energade), 4 Christoff van Heerden (Konica Minolta), 5 Jaco Venter (Neotel), 6 Ciaran Power (IRL, Pezula), 7 Arran Brown (House of Paint), 8 Jens-Erik Madsen (DEN, Danish track team), 9 Eijo Keisse (BEL, Belgian track team), 10 Dennis van Niekerk (Konica Minolta) Women, Elite: 1 Cherisse Taylor (MTN) 2:50:52, 2 Lynette Burger (Cyclelab Toyota), 3 Anriette Schoeman (Proline), 4 Chrissie Viljoen (Proline), 5 Jennie Stenerhag (Therme Skincare), 6 Yolandi du Toit (MTN), 7 Robyn de Groot (Proline), 8 Ashleigh Moolman, 9 Joanna Hotchkiss, 10 Frances Barnard – News 24