Paratus support elevated Cycle Classic to mega-event

 

More than 1000 cyclists entered the Paratus Cycle Classic earlier this month, making the event a true post-Covid revival for families and professional cyclists alike. The two-day event on 8 and 9 October included a kiddies’ race, a 50km mountain bike race and a 100km road race.

Technical organiser, Pierre du Plooy said the entries reflected people’s willingness to come out and play and compete again. “It was wonderful to see people coming together and enjoying themselves. The fact that several milestones were reached in terms of the numbers, the diversity of participation and the overall positive response, means that we have raised the bar on this event. Paratus has helped by giving the necessary might and technological support to take the event to a new level. We are very grateful not only to Paratus but also to The Namibian, to the City Police in Windhoek and to the two cycle shops (Mannie’s Bike Mecca and Cycletec) which both did so much to ensure the participants’ safety. We also thank the people of Windhoek for their patience and understanding while the races took place.”

Paratus Namibia MD, Andrew Hall who took part in the race, said afterwards “We are delighted to be able to bring new dynamics to the event – something that gives participants and spectators a new element of excitement in the form of livestreaming and instant results. This is the first event in our three-year sponsorship agreement, and we look forward to working closely with Rotary and all the various stakeholders to make the Paratus Cycle Classic an even better event in the future.”

Paratus is working with the Rotary Club to give new impetus to the Cycle Classic as well as provide support to the charitable projects that Rotary are currently working on. “This sponsorship is greater than the sum of its parts,” said Hall. “Not only are we making the main event totally inclusive, but we are also giving a leg-up to people in need and this fits well with our overall aim to transform Africa through exceptional digital infrastructure and service.”

Du Plooy added: “So many records were broken with the event this year. It’s great that so many impaired people took part and that our numbers increased – for example there were 35% more women in the 100km road race; we had 20% increase in the children’s race and many more entrants overall.”

100Km Open Women, 1^st Melissa Hinz, 2^nd Michelle Doman, 3^rd Courtney Liebenberg, 4^th Risa Dreyer, 5^th Anneke Steenkamp.

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100km Open Men, 1^st Ingram Cuff, 2^nd Alex Miller, 3^rd Drikus Coetzee, 4^th Martin Freyer.

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