Candice Lill and Adelheid Morath powered to victory on the queen stage of the Cape Epic in Stellenbosch today.
The South African-German duo, who ride for Summit Fin, claimed a winning time of 5:20:42 on the fifth stage, which featured a 100km route with 2 850m of ascent.
They held a four-minute gap over race leaders Annika Langvad and Anna van der Breggen (Investec-songo-Specialized) who had won every stage prior to today’s queen stage.
Summit Fin’s Candice Lill (front) and Adelheid Morath won the queen stage of the Cape Epic in Stellenbosch today. Photo: Sam Clark/Cape Epic
“It was very hard. Those little bumps on the profile never really ended. There wasn’t any particular long climb besides the King’s Climb, but it was just non-stop climbing,” said Lill.
She added that Van der Breggen suffered a crash in front of her as they came down the portage section.
“We managed to get a bit of a gap there and it looked like we kept it to the finish. We just kept it steady and didn’t get too excited.
Lill and Morath are in second place overall with a 22-minute gap to the leaders, while Ariane Lüthi and Maja Wloszczowska (Kross-Spur Racing) are in third, 52 minutes behind them.
“We still have a big gap to first, but to third is a lot more, which put us in a more comfortable position for the next two days. We’ll just give it our best to the finish.”
Morath said before starting the race they talked to each other and said if they had the legs they would push it at the beginning.
“We had the legs, so we kept the pace quite high and managed to be together with Annika and Anna and then took a gap.
“We had another little gap in the technical section, but they came for us again. After Anna’s crash we kept our pace and just managed to have a really good day together.”
Van der Breggen said they had a bad day and that it was not a good day to have a bad day.
“It felt like the longest day on the bike for me. We said before the stage that we had enough time in general, so if something happens then we just take it easy.
“After my crash I felt so bad and it was difficult to get the rhythm back again, so I needed some time for that. I was just suffering to the finish.”
Langvad, who celebrated her birthday today, felt proud of her partner and said she showed real character.
“I know how tough it is to be ready for the finish at 20km and then it’s only at 100km. It’s such a mental battle and you can’t describe it unless you’ve actually tried it yourself.
“I just tried to be there and nurse Anna through as well as possible, but ultimately she had to push the pedals herself. I’m really proud of her and she did an amazing job.”
