Lee Kotzé, 17, a cycling star on the rise is taking the Randmark Athletics Club by storm.
Her motto in sports and life is, “It’s just a hill – get over it.”
Kotzé only started riding in 2013 and competing later in 2014. She is both a mountain biker and a road cyclist.
So far she has 2 169km mountain bike experience and 1 935km road experience. Her current strength is hills.
To date Kotzé has achieved gold and silver medals in the 2015 provincial championships, a podium position in the Free State Schools Mountain Bike Series (MTB) and a whopping four consecutive top ten positions in the Gauteng High School MTB Series.
On the road she finished seventh in the well-known 94.7 Cycle Challenge and has achieved various other top positions in a number of road races.
To young Kotzé cycling and mountain biking is not just a hobby. Her short-term goals are achieving Gauteng colours in the Spur Schools MTB Series, joining a junior road cycling development team and winning many podium positions in 2015.
In addition to this, the very young and very level-headed Kotzé would like to obtain her South African colours and ride for a professional tour team while also aid in the development of female cyclists at school level in the long run.
“I have noticed very few girls competing in cycling events. I believe this creates opportunity for product marketing since girls would attract more in cycling’s sea of gentlemen.”
“I am still very young in cycling but I have committed myself to becoming the best I can be. I have proved this by more than achieving my set training goal during the 2014 December holidays. I’m confident that my skills and confidence will grow stronger in 2015 and that I will be able to establish a brand in junior girls’ cycling,” she said.
