CAPE EPIC DREAM START FOR WILIER-VITTORIA! AVONDETTO AND BRAIDOT WIN THE PROLOGUE

What a debut! Simone Avondetto and Luca Braidot couldn’t have asked for a better start at the Cape Epic, immediately making their mark in the prestigious stage race. The Wilier-Vittoria MTB Factory Team duo claimed victory in the prologue—a 26 km course with 750 meters of elevation gain, starting and finishing at the Meerendal Wine Estate.

Avondetto and Braidot crossed the line 20 seconds ahead of Swiss pair Nino Schurter and Filippo Colombo, with South African riders Marc Pritzen and Wessel Botha finishing 1’04” behind. Tomorrow, for the first 96 km stage featuring 2,750 meters of climbing around Meerendal Wine Estate, the Italian duo from Piedmont and Friuli will have the honor of wearing the yellow leader’s jersey.

"We’re really happy—we hoped for a strong result, but this exceeded expectations," said an ecstatic Avondetto. "A short stage like the prologue suits us cross-country specialists, and we made the most of the opportunity. Honestly, we could have done even better if not for a small technical issue that slowed us down. Wearing the yellow jersey tomorrow will be exciting, but we know the real race starts now. We’ll do our best to hold onto it as long as possible."

"What a way to start!" added Braidot. "I have to say, Simone was flying today—I was struggling a bit at first, but I managed to bounce back. We paced ourselves really well, handled a couple of technical issues calmly and maturely, and even got a little lucky that they weren’t more serious. We know the real challenge begins tomorrow, but for now, we’ll enjoy a stage win in the yellow jersey—an experience we’ll never forget."