The XCO race season got off to a flying start with the first SA XCO Cup and the first WP XCO Cup falling on the same weekend. South Africa’s local heroes lined up on the start line, together with an impressive number of international faces, including Victor Koretzky, Kate Courtney, and Nino Schurter. It promised to be a weekend of fierce competition and exceptional racing, and the spectators were not disappointed!
04 February: The first race of the season took place on an absolute scorcher of a day. Luke was forced to pull out of his Elite race with heat exhaustion. A disappointing end to the day, but the major concern was whether Luke would be able to compete on day two and potentially salvage some UCI points.
05 February: For the second race of the weekend, Luke dug deep and made it to the start gates after a rough end to the previous day’s racing. Straight out of the start gates, ten times World Champion Nino Schurter and the rest of the Scott SRAM MTB Factory Team took the lead, with Johan Van Zyl chasing.
Luke and fellow South African Philip Buys caught Johan thanks to some skillful riding, and then it became a race for the first South African. There was some jockeying for position between the three, and the final sprint started a long way out. With an ecstatic local crowd cheering them on, Philip pipped Luke with his final throw, with the two finishing 4th and 5th. Just over two minutes behind Nino, the South Africans gave an outstanding account of themselves, and Luke finished as the top U/23 rider.
Dynamic Technologies CEO Chris Wilkins says, “I was very impressed with Luke’s performance on the second day of racing. He really turned things around and achieved a great result. I am excited for the rest of his season, he’s got this!”