NOW in its 32nd year, the Tsogo Sun Amashova Durban Classic has consolidated its place as one of the most sought-after races on South Africa’s cycling calendar. Attracting elite and social cyclists locally and from abroad, the race is also doing its bit for community upliftment by supplying developing teams with free entries and through other social initiatives.
This year the race will see 187 development riders participating amounting to a significant value in sponsorship.
Race organiser, Annie Batchelder said she believed sport had great power to affect change by giving disadvantaged or vulnerable people in a community a purpose.
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“By allowing development teams to participate for free, we believe we are playing our part in nurturing the sport within poorer communities and giving underprivileged kids and adults a platform to compete.”
Another CSI component to the Tsogo Sun Amashova that is already proving crucial to developing the sport in outer lying areas are their Safety Bike Parks, which are built at disadvantaged schools along the race route. Here, not only are children provided with bikes that are used to teach them how to ride – but the youth are also taught to become safe cyclists and to understand general road rules.
“Our bike parks address road safety at grassroots level to encourage children to be more aware of the rules of the road to make them safer for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists. We have also had reports from the three schools we have donated bike parks to over recent years that in general there has been a significant uptake in the level of cycling participation by students and the surrounding communities, which is crucial for the development and growth of this great sport.”
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