Dash fever on the rise
International riders, including from Germany, Belgium, Canada, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Australia, are expected at this year’s event.
SPORT REPORTER
There can be very little doubt that 2019 has already been an eventful cycling year in Namibia, even before the Nedbank Desert Dash essentially closes off the annual cycling activities in December.
This year, local cycling enthusiasts had the good fortune to see some of the continent’s very best riders in action during the African Continental Mountain Bike Championships, which was hosted by the Namibian Cycling Federation (NCF) through a N$375 000 sponsorship from Nedbank Namibia.
The championships served as a great platform for honing local cycling talent, but also had immense returns, as Alex Miller and Michelle Vorster managed to secure the two spots and qualifying for Namibia at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Similarly, the cycling team at the African Games in Morocco returned with medal spoils, thus reinforcing the generally-held view that Namibian cycling is on the rise.
Nedbank Namibia managing director Lionel Matthews said that heroes will once more emerge from the Desert Dash.
“The sheer fact that we will have a large contingent of South African cyclists participating in the 2019 edition of the Nedbank Desert Dash, joined by riders from Germany, eSwatini, Belgium, Canada, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Australia and Spain, is testimony to the drawing power of the event itself,” he said.
“Early accounts following the closing on entries indicate that the 2019 edition will amass the largest number of participants ever seen for the event.”
An interesting aspect has been the number of additional entries in the solo and two-person team categories.
An additional 32 two-person team entries, as well as 54 solo entries were received, which illustrates the popularity of the race. The available 100 slots for four-person teams have again been snapped up, and one team that will certainly be vying for podium honours will include the likes of multiple national and continental champions Miller and Tristan de Lange.
The organising teams have been working hard over the past few months to ensure that the 2019 edition is the best ever. Both the Swakopmund municipality and the City of Windhoek, as hosting towns, have been magnanimous in their support, and Matthews applauded their direct involvement in support of the event.
“We have great appreciation for the enthusiasm of all our co-sponsors, and particularly Indongo Toyota, Gondwana Collection Namibia and SuperSpar Maerua and The Grove.
“As Friday, 6 December draws ever closer, all of us at Nedbank Namibia wish all the participants only the very best with their preparations. A warm-up race into the evening will take place at The Grove Mall in Windhoek on Tuesday, 12 November and we look forward to seeing many of the dashers at the event,” Matthews added.
There can be very little doubt that 2019 has already been an eventful cycling year in Namibia, even before the Nedbank Desert Dash essentially closes off the annual cycling activities in December.
This year, local cycling enthusiasts had the good fortune to see some of the continent’s very best riders in action during the African Continental Mountain Bike Championships, which was hosted by the Namibian Cycling Federation (NCF) through a N$375 000 sponsorship from Nedbank Namibia.
The championships served as a great platform for honing local cycling talent, but also had immense returns, as Alex Miller and Michelle Vorster managed to secure the two spots and qualifying for Namibia at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Similarly, the cycling team at the African Games in Morocco returned with medal spoils, thus reinforcing the generally-held view that Namibian cycling is on the rise.
Nedbank Namibia managing director Lionel Matthews said that heroes will once more emerge from the Desert Dash.
“The sheer fact that we will have a large contingent of South African cyclists participating in the 2019 edition of the Nedbank Desert Dash, joined by riders from Germany, eSwatini, Belgium, Canada, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Australia and Spain, is testimony to the drawing power of the event itself,” he said.
“Early accounts following the closing on entries indicate that the 2019 edition will amass the largest number of participants ever seen for the event.”
An interesting aspect has been the number of additional entries in the solo and two-person team categories.
An additional 32 two-person team entries, as well as 54 solo entries were received, which illustrates the popularity of the race. The available 100 slots for four-person teams have again been snapped up, and one team that will certainly be vying for podium honours will include the likes of multiple national and continental champions Miller and Tristan de Lange.
The organising teams have been working hard over the past few months to ensure that the 2019 edition is the best ever. Both the Swakopmund municipality and the City of Windhoek, as hosting towns, have been magnanimous in their support, and Matthews applauded their direct involvement in support of the event.
“We have great appreciation for the enthusiasm of all our co-sponsors, and particularly Indongo Toyota, Gondwana Collection Namibia and SuperSpar Maerua and The Grove.
“As Friday, 6 December draws ever closer, all of us at Nedbank Namibia wish all the participants only the very best with their preparations. A warm-up race into the evening will take place at The Grove Mall in Windhoek on Tuesday, 12 November and we look forward to seeing many of the dashers at the event,” Matthews added.
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