Johannesburg - As Daryl Impey kicked off his season in fine form in Australia at the Tour Down Under on Sunday, another South African was celebrating a first for the country at the same time.
Impey finished fifth and took the overall win for the points jersey on the sixth and final stage of the Tour Down Under in Adelaide, while Dutchman Wouter Wippert of the Drapac team won on a South African brand bicycle, the Swift Carbon. It is the first time a South African bicycle has won a World Tour race.
Wippert held off Australian National road champion, Heinrich Haussler (IAM Cycling), on the 90km circuit through Adelaide.
“He did it,” said SwiftCarbon chief executive Mark Blewett, the former South African professional who founded and runs the company. “He was boxed in, then took a gap and flew. I sensed it was coming all week. I was there on the line after last Sunday’s criterium and could see he was gutted - he had the speed but got stuck too far back. On Friday he went about three seconds too early and was third again. Now he was perfect. What a lead out by Graeme Brown.”
Tom Southam is the sports director for Drapac and has a South African connection, having raced on the South African-sponsored Barloworld team.
“Last year we were aggressive, but I wanted the guys to actually come away with a real result. We came into this race with a plan to have a go at the sprint stages as it was our best chance to win a stage. Even though it took us all week to get it right, the boys knew that they had to remain patient, as they had three opportunities to win,” said Southam.
Impey finished seventh overall at the Tour Down Under, the Orica-GreenEdge rider showing good early-season form as he gears up for a busy year. Impey took the first points at the first bonus sprint section, but could not improve his overall standing and remained 35 seconds behind Rohan Dennis (BMC), the overall winner.
“It was a little hectic in the final stretch. We got it together but with Durbo (Luke Durbridge) crashing out we missed that final guy in the finish and we ran a little bit short at the end,” said Impey.
“It would have been nice to finish with the win but to finish with the sprinters jersey, and a top 10 overall in such a class field, to top off the teamwork the guys put in here is great.”
“It’s been a good week,” Matt White, the team’s sports director, said. “The guys committed everyday and they came up just short a couple of times. For us it’s an important race, so to come away without a win is a little bit disappointing but it was not through a lack of effort from the boys that’s for sure.
“We showed we are one of the best teams here. It’s a nice consolation prize to take home the sprint jersey, a second and a third at this race. We were in the mix every single stage so that is gratifying.”
The Star