At the core of the change is the desire to bring stage racing in line with the norms of cycling more generally. This will see the Elite Women race for the same duration, rather than across the same distance as the Elite Men. The adjusted distances will encourage earlier attacks, smaller time gaps, and closer competition. The 2026 edition will feature dedicated Elite Women’s routes, where the course will deviate from the general Absa Cape Epic route, reducing the total distance to align the expected winning time of the Elite Women with that of the Elite Men. On point-to-point stages, the Elite Women will enjoy a separate remote start. While on stages that loop back to the same start/finish venue, the Elite Women will deviate from the general route to maintain time parity with the Elite Men. The Elite Women will race the general Prologue and Grand Finale routes, due to the fact that the racing duration falls within the time parity outlines set by the event’s management team. These initiatives will only be rolled out in the Elite Women’s category and will not affect the Open, NTT Masters, or GIC Grand Masters Women’s competitions, nor will they impact the women taking part in the Toyota Mixed category.
“The change to parity in race time will sharpen the spectacle,” Shannon Valstar, Race Director for the Absa Cape Epic, promised. “This innovation follows naturally from the granting of the UCI HC status to the Elite Women’s race, prize money parity, and the institution of a separate start
Leave a Reply