William Mokgopo puts Diepsloot on the map
DIEPSLOOT – Diepsloot resident, William Mokgopo, recently clinched his first-ever victory as a professional rider at the Momentum 947 Mountain Bike Challenge which took place at Riversands Commercial Park recently.
The Team Kargo rider powered away from veteran Nico Pfitzenmaier (Team Dorma-Pyga) over the 55km distance in the elite field.
Mokgopo held nothing back in his celebrations as he crossed the line, punching the air and shouting with joy as he won in 2:02:12. A product of the Diepsloot Mountainbike Academy (DMA), Mokgopo, has worked hard in his personal life and his cycling career to become a professional cyclist and has represented South Africa at the UCI MTB World Championships.
It was poignant that part of the route he won on went through Northern Farms, where the academy is based. The DMA combines cycling with lifestyle programmes, providing the youth of Diepsloot with education and bursaries.
Mokgopo said, “I went hard after the neutral zone [because] I knew Pfitzenmaier was a threat and decided to see what the other riders had. I pushed it hard a few times to see if I could break away. We got a gap and broke up the bunch. I think we had about seven guys left in the final break with one guy pacing.
“I put in a big effort as we went through Steyn City, but I didn’t want Pfitzenmaier too close to me because he is good on the descents. When I went hard again, I got the space and kept it going.”
The win was a great achievement for Mokgopo who crashed badly in the race last year and had to have stitches to his knee. “I’ve wanted to win this race for four years. Two years ago I got third. To win in my hood makes it even more special,” he said.
Pfitzenmaier said “I saw William putting in some hard efforts to break up the group and marked him. I didn’t want to put in too many big efforts and burn too much energy, so I paced myself back to his wheel. But near the end, he was too strong.”
Details: www.cyclechallenge.co.za
