NAD withdraws sponsorship due to Covid-19 challenges
The partnership between Mbombela cyclist, Nico Bell, Matthew Beers from the Western Cape and Wessel Botha from Pretoria and New Africa Developments (NAD), has provided a much-needed boost for mountain biking in the Lowveld and beyond.
This partnership has ended, with NAD withdrawing its sponsorship of the team after a five-year journey together.
The national lockdown has had a hugely negative impact on a number of businesses across the Lowveld and NAD numbers among those that suffered severe financial losses.
Team NAD, during their journey, have racked up a number of titles in mountain biking circles and lifted the sport’s profile on national and international level, with winning the African jersey at last year’s ABSA Cape Epic being one of the major highlights.
Their exceptional performances have seen the team gaining recognition after a dominant streak in which they claimed almost all the premier events.
This year, the three team members were expected to sweep aside the competition and claim more victories, but it was not to be after the cancellation of the ABSA Cape Epic before the national lockdown was declared.
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After taking the decision to withdraw its sponsorship of Team NAD, CEO Japie van Niekerk said, “At this difficult time our company’s primary obligation must be towards its staff and the customers served by our shopping malls”.
“The commitment and dedication of Nico and his team have always been faultless, and the decision to effectively end Team NAD has nothing to do with the team, but rather the extraordinary circumstance which we all find ourselves in.”
Robin Houghton of NAD expressed similar sentiments and said it has had to review its financial situation after the lockdown.
“We have had almost no income from April and have had to lend a hand to help our communities by providing all our customers with free sanitisers, and a free loaf of bread for Sassa grant recipients.
This has increased our financial commitments and forced us to focus on our primary business, which is our shopping centres.”
“Nico and the team have done a fantastic job over the past five years. All the building blocks were in place for a really good season. At this stage, we are trying to see if we can get them involved with other sponsors,” he said.
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