The final stage of the 2026 Momentum Medical Scheme Tankwa Trek, presented by Biogen, on Sunday, 8 February, saw Greta Seiwald and Sara Cortinovis wrap up a perfect overall victory. The Decathlon Ford | Unno pairing completed their fourth stage win of the race to underline their dominance in the Anderson Transport UCI Women\u2019s competition. The UCI Men\u2019s champions, Andreas Seewald and Jakob Hartmann, endured a nervy final stage, punctuated by a pair of punctures, but with the assistance of their Singer KTM teammates, Simon Stiebjahn and Martin Frey, rolled home worthy winners. Ahead of them, Travis Stedman and Jaedon Terlouw won the stage to leapfrog into third on the final general classification standings.<\/p>\n
Marc Pritzen (leading) made life tough for this fellow UCI Men, creating an on-again\/off-again pace which stung tired legs. Photo by Oakpics.com.<\/em><\/p>\n Over the 280 kilometres and four days of racing, the First Ascent pink jersey wearers were never in trouble. On Stage 1, they established a 1-minute and 27-second advantage over Vera Looser and Samantha Sanders; the following day, they were patient and only attacked the Efficient Infiniti Insure team in the closing kilometres, adding 47 seconds to their lead. The Queen Stage and the Merino Monster offered Seiwald and Cortinovis the opportunity to all but secure their title, and they seized it, winning the stage and claiming the Queen of the Mountain hotspot prize. Going into the final stage, the Decathlon Ford | Unno team had a 6-minute and 13-second buffer to Looser and Sanders.<\/p>\n They could have raced Stage 4 cautiously, but opted for an attack as the best form of defence. \u201cSam [Samantha Sanders] set a really fast pace in the opening kilometres,\u201d Seiwald noted. \u201cFrom the cross-country circuit we\u2019re used to that, so when she eased off just a bit, I went to the front and kept the speed up.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe had to try something,\u201d Sanders smiled. \u201cIt didn\u2019t work, but I\u2019m happy with our race. We raced hard and worked well as a team.\u201d<\/p>\n Once Seiwald had forced a split, the Decathlon Ford | Unno pair kept putting power through the pedals and added another 7:15 to their final margin of victory. \u201cGreta basically rode in front for four days,\u201d Cortinovis praised. \u201cToday, she set the pace throughout the stage.\u201d<\/p>\n Behind them, the Efficient Infiniti Insure combination had to settle for second for the fourth time. The final podium place on the day went to Safari Essence Titan Racing. \u201cRoxy [Roxanne Kemp] had some stomach issues coming into the race, but she managed to get over those yesterday. Today, she had more energy, and we were able to race closer to our level,\u201d Danielle du Toit stated. \u201cIt\u2019s a nice positive way to end the race, and gives us confidence to take into the upcoming events.\u201d<\/p>\n Du Toit and Kemp outsprinted the Fortress Toyota team, but Cherise Willeit and Ila Stow comfortably retained their general classification podium position. 1Of1 x Summerplace Racing\u2019s Lilian Baber and Malena Seer were fifth on the day, and fourth overall, ahead of Safari Essence Titan Racing in fifth.<\/p>\n The UCI Men\u2019s race was a more tense affair, with just 50 seconds separating second and third, and 2:18 between third and fourth. Seewald and Hartmann held a significant, but not insurmountable, 5 minutes and 23 seconds\u2019 advantage. The final stage has been the scene of drama before, with crashes and mechanicals playing their part in determining the final general classification standings. Hence, Singer KTM were cautious in their approach.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe we were too cautious,\u201d Seewald allowed. \u201cBecause we made life difficult for ourselves with me puncturing twice. Fortunately, our teammates were right there to help. The first time we got back to the group and the second, though it was a worse puncture, we never panicked.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe first time we plugged the hole, and the second time we had to put two plugs in,\u201d Simon Stiebjahn, of Singer KTM 1, recounted. \u201cThe last puncture was 10 kilometres from the finish, so we knew we weren\u2019t going to catch the group again,\u201d Seewald concluded.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a strange stage,\u201d Wessel Botha said. \u201cMarc [Pritzen] drove the pace so hard on the open roads, then sat up in the trails. This meant that there was always a fight for the singletracks, and the pace was constantly on and off, making it a tough final stage after three hard days.\u201d<\/p>\n Botha and his Insect Science teammate, Johan van Zyl, were able to distance the Honeycomb 226ers D2mont Merida squad, with the help of Toyota Specialized Imbuko and the two Singer Racing teams. Sensing that third place on the general classification was up for grabs, Stedman and Terlouw increased the speed. The South Africans did not let off when Seewald punctured, focusing on the race for the podium places and battling for stage honours.<\/p>\n Insect Science and Toyota Specialized Imbuko were inseparable until the final bend, when they thundered into the finishing straight. Stedman crossed the line first, with Terlouw splitting Botha and Van Zyl, handing Toyota Specialized Imbuko the victory. They then began counting the seconds to see what the final general classification standings would be.<\/p>\n 1 minute and 58 seconds later, the two KTM Singer teams crossed the line, securing the 2026 Momentum Medical Scheme Tankwa Trek, presented by Biogen, title for Seewald and Hartmann. Pritzen and Pernsteiner finished 2 minutes and 28 seconds after the day\u2019s victors, ceding third place overall to Stedman and Terlouw.<\/p>\n Along with the stories of success in the event and the tales of form building for the season, the most heartwarming takeaway was Hartmann\u2019s elation at securing the victory. \u201cThis victory is an emotional one for me,\u201d Hartmann had confessed after winning Stage 2. \u201cWhen I was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism last year, I was told by my doctors that I would perhaps never race again and probably never regain my best level. To feel so strong today, to win the stage, and to take yellow in such a significant stage race is big for me.\u201d Sunday\u2019s emotions were even deeper for the 30-year-old German and augur well for the year ahead.<\/p>\n 2026 Momentum Medical Scheme Tankwa Trek, presented by Biogen, Results:<\/strong><\/p>\n Stage 4 | UCI Men\u2019s Results:<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Stage 4 Anderson Transport UCI Women\u2019s Results:<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n UCI Men\u2019s General Classification after Stage 4:<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n UCI Anderson Transport Women\u2019s General Classification after Stage 4:<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n For the full results, please click\u00a0here<\/a>. For more information, visit\u00a0www.tankwatrek.co.za<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\n
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