Excellent teamwork by the OfficeGuru team helped secure Marc Pritzen’s maiden 947 Ride Joburg win in Johannesburg today.
The U23 national road champion thanked Alexander Worsdale for all the hard work he put in before Pritzen attacked with less than 50m remaining.
“I have to thank my teammate for the work at the end there,” said the 20-year-old, who is originally from Windhoek.
“That was just brilliant. Thank you, Wors. Just to get that little bit of a gap took a bit of pressure off of me. I’m just happy to have pulled it off.”
Marc Pritzen won his maiden 947 Ride Joburg title in Johannesburg today. Photo: Henk Neuhoff
Worsdale, who came second, said the attack at the end was a key part of the plan to protect Pritzen.
“It was also to keep him in the best shape for the sprint.
“We set ourselves up quite nicely today. We didn’t over-exert ourselves with the King of the Mountains and hotspots and saved ourselves for the finish,” said Worsdale.
Pritzen said they wanted a small group heading into the finish of the 94.7km race.
“We knew the finish was very technical, especially the last left-hander at the top. If you have 15 seconds, you’re gone – it’s so fast down that hill.
“It worked out perfectly. We were a bit surprised that we got away so early but it worked out great, so we’re happy.”
The Tour de Windhoek champion felt the team had had an “absolutely brilliant” year.
“I can just say thank you to them for all the success I’ve achieved, and what the team have achieved.
“This is a team sport at the end of the day, so without them nothing would be possible. This is not me who has won; this is OfficeGuru who has won.”
Pritzen added that this was a race he had always wanted to win.
“It’s amazing. I’m still speechless – it hasn’t sunk in yet at all.”
