Schurter, Fini bag Cape Epic Prologue win

Multiple Cape Epic champion Nino Schurter and Sebastian Fini won the team time trial Prologue on the foothills at Lourensford Wine Estate in Somerset West on Sunday.

The duo, riding for World Bicycle Relief, were followed by the Toyota-Specialized-NinetyOne outfit of two-time defending champ, Matt Beers and 2018 winner, Howard Grotts.

Hans Becking and Wout Alleman of Buff Megamo rounded out the podium.

For seven-time starter and former winner Schurter, this was only his second Cape Epic Prologue win.

"Coming here from Europe, I thought 'Okay, it's not too hot' but it was brutal out there. On the climbs, the air was just standing still - so I think maybe we went too fast in the beginning and suffered towards the end, but still very happy with the result," he told the official Cape Epic website.

Nino Schurter & Sebastian Fini (World Bicycle Relief) racing home to claim the win at the 2024 Cape Epic Prologue. Red-hot racing in red-hot conditions.#AbsaCapeEpic #Untamed #Epic2024 pic.twitter.com/xbHXWPkavb

SCHURTER, FINI FASTEST STARTERS AT ABSA CAPE EPIC PROLOGUENino Schurter and Sebastian Fini, racing as World Bicycle Relief, scorched their way around the Prologue stage in Somerset West to claim the early lead at the 2023 Absa Cape Epic on Sunday.https://t.co/mLELz0NGeX pic.twitter.com/U4r6g0454n

In the women's category, Ghost Factory Racing's Anne Terpstra and Nicole Koller starred on their debut when they claimed the win and overall lead.

Candice Lill and Mona Mitterwallner, riding for Cannondale Factory Racing, appeared to be neck-and-neck in the early stages, but the heat proved too much for Austrian rider Mitterwallner.

DEBUTANT DELIGHT FOR TERPSTRA, KOLLERGhost Factory Racing’s Anne Terpstra & Nicole Koller experienced