Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka’s Stefan de Bod has relished a successful stint in Europe since departing South Africa after the Cape Town Cycle Tour in mid-March.
De Bod finished 25th in Cape Town’s trademark race but he enjoyed taking the overall spoils in the Tour of Good Hope earlier that same week.
In February De Bod won the under-23 SA National Road Championships time-trial, before a crash affected his chances in the road-race where he finished fifth.
However, a successful spell in Europe over the past three months has been telling for De Bod, who is currently in his final year of under-23.
Predominantly plying his trade in Italy, De Bod managed to solo to victory in the 157km GP Palio of Recioto in early April.
Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka’s Stefan de Bod (left) has relished a successful stint in Europe since departing South Africa after the Cape Town Cycle Tour in mid-March. Photo: Supplied
Most recently, on Saturday, De Bod finished second in the 167km Trofeo Alcide Degasperi and yesterday he played a part in helping his Italian teammate Matteo Sobrero win the Coppa della Pace.
“Everyone is on really good form at the moment because there are some big tours coming up in the next month-and-a-half,” De Bod told In the Bunch.
“The plan was to get some good results for the team over the weekend and we selected a really strong team.
“We have not raced in a while [prior to the weekend] so everyone was a bit unsure how they would perform.”
The team produced mixed results in the seven-stage French race, Le Tour de Bretagne in late April, where De Bod was the team’s general classification holder and finished 27th overall.
Over the last weekend, they aimed to make a statement, in which De Bod and Sobrero “played key roles”.
“On Saturday the team rode really well when three guys broke away with about 60km to go. The team chased hard.
“Then on the climb with about 40km left, Matteo and I attacked but we were followed by the other strong teams. That is when I counter-attacked on the flat section.
“I got a gap and I saw the guys behind me were having difficulty chasing me down. I just kept going and Matteo tried to move over when the other guys tried to attack me.”
De Bod managed to break away from the bunch, but there was a three-and-a-half minute gap between him and the leading two riders.
“When the pace went up in the last 30km I caught the one guy from the front, who dropped.
“I then chased the leading rider and I closed the gap quite quickly, but the gap was just a little bit too big. He managed to stay away.
“Behind me the bunch sprinted for the line, where Matteo finished sixth,” De Bod said, after completing the race in 4:09:43, 18 seconds behind the winner Simone Ravanelli and four-and-a-half minutes ahead of the bunch.
De Bod said he and Sobrero attacked on the one climb in yesterday’s race as well, but that he was too “watched” to make any real headway.
“Matteo managed to get away, but it was difficult for me because I was closely watched by some of the riders, so we changed the plan a bit.
“One guy followed Matteo, but he managed to win the sprint between them. I finished in the top 20.”
De Bod said the team had been improving with every race. “In terms of technicalities, tactics, downhills and racing in the bunch we continue to get better.
“We know what to do and when to make the calls in the race. That has been really good for us and the whole team is positive.
“The form is also just getting better after we had some off time following Le Tour de Bretagne.”
