Multiple former winner Kevin Evans will be in a different outfit when he defends his title in The Herald VW Cycle Tour’s 80km Extreme mountain bike challenge at Addo on Saturday. Evans, who started his mountain biking career in Port Elizabeth, has joined FedGroup-Itec Connect in the wake of the much-publicised demise of his former team and will bring teammates Brandon Stewart, who won in 2011, and Bridgette Minnaar-Stewart along for the ride. “It’s very early in the season for us but it will be great preparation for the racing to come later in the season.” The Plettenberg Bay-based rider said his training was going well despite recovering from abdominal surgery in early December. “I’m about a month behind but should be back to full strength by mid-February.” He said he was looking forward to competing on the uncharted territory of the new course, after torrential downpours forced a last-minute route change last year. “It will be nice to race over some new terrain.” The four-time national marathon champion said he was expecting strong opposition from the likes of Team Blend Properties’ Charles Keey and possibly former Tour de France rider John-Lee Augustyn, who has made a return to racing following an extended injury-induced layoff. He will also be facing ex-teammate James Reid, former national road champion Darren Lill and cross-country racer Oliver Munnik. Evans will also take part in the 106km Classic road race in PE on the Sunday, which will put the 34-year-old in contention for the newly introduced Ultimate Quest category, which rewards riders with the shortest combined time across both events. Evans, who finished fifth in the Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour last year, said the super-category gave mountain bikers like himself and Stewart a distinct advantage over their road counterparts. “It will most certainly favour the mountain bikers, as the time gaps are always much bigger off-road than on.” Evans said he was looking forward …
SPLASH INTO THE NEW YEAR
Hundreds of social swimmers are expected to head for Kings Beach on the last day of 2012 for the inaugural Nelson Mandela Bay Mile Ocean Swim which has already attracted a lot of attention from open water swimmers from around the country. "Some of South Africa's best open waters swimmers are heading for the Sabrina Love Challenge in Plettenberg Bay on the 28th and are keen to follow this up with the Madiba Mile on the 31st before hitting some of the local stops for a New Years Eve party." said race organiser Mike Zoetmulder of Zports. "We've also had a lot of interest from social swimmers who are in town on holiday and keen to be part of the water sport scene in Nelson Mandela Bay." The Ocean Mile has been added to the water sport program to offer holiday makers the opportunity to be involved in the cities popular open water scene which has exploded since the introduction of the Ironman to Port Elizabeth in 2005. Participants of the cities first official Ocean Mile swim are required to report for entry on Kings Beach on Monday 31st before 8.30am for body marking after which they will walk along the beachfront promenade to Humewood Beach for the start of the one-way Mile swim which will end on Kings Beach alongside the slipway. The swim offers spectators a wonderful spectacle along the entire promenade between Humewood and Kings Beach with swimmers being kept just behind the surf line. Online registration and information available on www.zports.co.za/nmbmile or entry forms available at News Cafe on the Boardwalk. Late entries will be accepted on the morning of the event at Kings Beach from 7.30am. URL: https://www.zports.co.za/nmbmile Twitter: Facebook: YouTube: Author: Michael Zoetmulder from Zports. Originally distributed by MyPR.co.za. No of Images Uploaded: Two To gain access to Two image/s please Like, Tweet or +1 this article: [l2g] Images: Popular open water swimming scene in Nelson Mandela Bay Photographer: Zports Start of the …
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The World Orchestra – SA Tour
The World Orchestra is a dynamic group of young musicians from over 50 different countries who get together twice a year to live and make music together. Managed by East-West Music, and conducted by Maestro Josep Vicent, it uses the medium of music not only to entertain, but as a communicator of ideas and a platform to spread the social involvement of the young members of the orchestra. During the 2012/2013 season, The World Orchestra will take their project UNITED IN MUSIC to South Africa, Netherlands, Spain and Balkans with the support of the Culture Programme of the European Union. The World Orchestra will tour South Africa in February 2013. The tour kicks off in Durban with a concert at the Durban City Hall on the 7th February. This special concert, in partnership with the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra, will see collaboration on a grand scale as part of the KZN Philharmonic’s 30th Anniversary celebrations. From there they make their way to their next concerts – in Plettenberg Bay on the 10th February; at the Knysna NG Church on the 11th February; at the Endler Hall in Stellenbosch – as part of The Endler Concert Series on the 15th February; and finally in Cape Town at the Cape Town City Hall on the 16th February, joining the 7th Cape Town International Summer Music Festival. In addition to these concerts, The World Orchestra will also host community workshops in Inanda, East London, and Heideveld. Named “Cultural Ambassadors for Peace” by the Spanish Fundación Cultura de Paz, these young musicians will bring the power of music and their message of hope to previously disadvantaged communities. The World Orchestra’s Principal Conductor and Artistic Director, Maestro Josep Vicent, says “It was through my active interest in the musical influences from different cultures, that I first realized, and started learning about, the important role of music as a tool for social empowerment and intercultural exchange. There is no better way of finding understanding and …
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Varsity sports heading for television
University sport in South Africa is set to get a high-performance boost with the launch of the Varsity Sports competition platform, which took place in Plettenberg Bay on Wednesday and Margate on Thursday. Spawned from the highly successful Varsity Cup rugby tournament, Varsity Sports is the result of a partnership between 11 of South Africa’s top universities and Advent Sport Entertainment and Media (Asem). Speaking at the launch, Asem CEO and former Springbok captain Francois Pienaar said the first phase of the made-for-television inter-university competition would get underway at the end of the month with two action-packed Olympic sporting codes in men’s rugby sevens and women’s beach volleyball. The latter was introduced at the Atlanta games in 1996, with the former set to make its debut in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. "I personally believe there is so much sevens talent out there that will emerge through Varsity Sports," said Pienaar. "And this year women’s beach volleyball was the most sought after ticket at the Olympics. You’ve got great athletes, it’s glamorous and great fun." According to him, the competition, which had been three years in the making, aimed to achieve three major goals. "Firstly, we want to be the high-performance level between school and professional sport, giving those students with talent the chance to compete on television in a structured environment." To this end, Pienaar said Varsity Sports would play a supporting role to all University Sport South Africa structures and sporting federations. "Secondly, Varsity Sports will be assisting with transforming the sport to provide opportunities at tertiary level. But, and this is very important, the participants have to study and be successful because there is life after sport. "And, thirdly, we have to commercialise the space in order to bring sponsors on board and ensure that the concept is sustainable and self-sufficient." Co-sponsors First National Bank, Steers …
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2012 Vocacom 4U Rage Festival plans in full swing
G&G Productions is already hard at work producing bigger, louder and safer celebrations for youth across the country as planning for the Vodacom 4U Rage Festival 2012 gets underway. Students across South Africa are set to take over the coastal towns of Umhlanga, Ballito, Durban and Plettenberg Bay to unleash the stresses of their matric and university years in November and early December, at one of the biggest events of the year. 2012 marks the 11th year of G&G Productions running the Vodacom 4U Rage Festival, which is once again backed by the power of Vodacom 4U and BlackBerry. With these Generation Next award-winning brands on board for their second year in a row, G&G Productions will again be bringing their A-game party arrangements and meticulous safety planning to South Africa’s youth. Greg Walsh, Managing Director of G&G Productions says, “Our goal every year is to make Rage an unforgettable experience for everyone involved, be it those who attend the events day and night or our partner brands who bring unbelievable value and unique experiential touch-points to the youth each and every year. The G&G brand promise of being “South Africa’s loudest event brand” is something we are very serious about so we are always looking for new ways to impress our audiences.” Since its first year in 2001, Rage-goers have increased from 8000 to a whopping 120 000. “We are expecting a footfall of 135 000 this year,” says Walsh. “We pride ourselves on providing the ultimate let-loose experiences at beautiful coastal hotspots so that students can experience the South African version of America’s ‘Springbreak’ (hosted by Cancun in Mexico).” Walsh is quick to highlight that the majority of G&G’s resources go into complying with stringent international safety requirements and providing new ways to keep partygoers safe and secure at the 4U Rage Festival. “All 4U Rage Festival events comply with the latest Health and Safety Act of 2011. We are …
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RE-CM invests in Knysna race
Title sponsor RE-CM has upped the ante by offering almost R100 000 worth of prizes in next year’s Knysna 200 mountain bike race, for which entries opened this week. The third edition of the three-stage race, which takes place along the Garden Route from June 7, now offers a R45 000 prize purse for the winners. In addition RE-CM, an asset management company, will be giving away unit trusts to the value of R50 000 in a raffle, with proceeds from ticket sales going to race’s charity of choice. According to race organiser Patric Mosterd, the increased investment will go a long way towards making the 200km event one of the most prestigious and sought-after on the mountain biking calendar. “This is about proper mountain biking and awesome single track. The pros can race it in the red from beginning to end but it’s also a great experience for first-time stage racers.” Last year’s event was won by Louis Bresler-Knipe and Jaco Venter of Team Contego-28E, while the bizhub-FCF pairing of Yolandi du Toit and Leana de Jager took the women’s title. Mosterd said the field would be strictly limited to 300 riders, across the solo and team categories, in order to retain the overall quality of the event. “What makes the race so special is that the daily stages start with the best riding in the forest – there’s no junk miles getting to the trails.” He said the 74km first stage, featuring 1 540m of ascent, would roll out from the Knysna Elephant Park, pass through lush Wittedrift farms and follow the old railway line to the lagoonside finish. “The highlight on day one must be riding ‘Parks se Pad’, which is the Holy Grail of all mountain bike routes in the area. The RE-CM Knysna 200 is the only event to traverse this beautiful stretch of indigenous forest.” The 68km second stage, which climbs 1 250m, starts in Rheenendal and takes riders through the “no-go” sections of the Garden Route National Park. “This is elephant territory and riding this section of …