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GEORGE NEWS - Former Outeniqua High School learner Tristan Nortje, alongside Matt Beers, who has strong links to Knysna, lost their yellow jersey lead this morning, Wednesday 18 March, after Stage 3 of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic from Montagu to Greyton.
The coveted yellow jersey now belongs to the Italian team Luca Braidot and Simone Avondeto (Wilier-Vittoria)
South African Marc Pritzen and Switzerland’s Felix Stehli won the stage, while Beers and Nortje (Toyota Specialized Imbuko), delayed by a mechanical issue that forced a tyre change, dropped to fifth on the stage and are now second overall with Braidot and Avondeto in first.
The top four teams all finished within just over three minutes of each other. With four stages still to go before the final on Sunday, the battle for the overall win remains wide open.
In the women’s race, Capetonian Candice Lill and Swiss rider Alessandra Keller (Thömus Maxon Sabi Sabi) maintained their stronghold after Stage 3, which was the longest leg of the event at 140 km with 1450 m of climbing.
The pair won the stage in 3:58:56, extending their overall lead. Close behind were Kate Courtney and Greta Seiwald (She Sends Foundation), followed by Rosa Van Doorn and Vera Looser (Buff-BH | Efficient Infiniti) in third. Hayley Preen and Haley Smith (Chemchamp Honeycomb) finished fourth, just over four minutes behind the stage winners.
The start of the women's race in Montagu on Tuesday morning.
Overall, Lill and Keller continue to dominate the women’s race, maintaining a strong lead of nearly five minutes over Courtney and Seiwald.
Preen and Smith are over 30 minutes back in third, while Van Doorn and Looser remain in the top four.
Yesterday’s Stage 2 had been won by cross-country specialists Sam Gaze and Luca Schwarzbauer, who surged ahead in the final kilometres to finish in 3:54:55. Italy’s Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto followed in second, with Beers and Nortje just four seconds behind.
On the 102 km route with most climbing early on, Beers and Nortje had set a steady pace, staying out of trouble on the rocky terrain, but the explosive pace of the XC specialists in the final 20 km proved decisive.
WATCH: Jeff Ayliffe spoke to the legendary Kate Courtney after her race on Tuesday.
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