Ashleigh is SA’s shining light
MOOLMAN-PASIO EARNS BRONZE
Close, but no cigar for Impey as his team misses out on a medal in the team time trial in Bergen.
Despite her campaign coming to a crashing halt, Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio was relatively pleased with a mixed bag of results at the UCI Road Cycling World Championships.
After standing out as the nation’s top rider at the annual showpiece, Moolman-Pasio’s season ended in disappointment at the weekend when she crashed in the women’s road race in Bergen.
Producing a brave solo fight, she was involved in a collision with three other riders with less than 35km remaining in the 152.8km battle for the elite crown, and it was later revealed that she had fractured the sacrum in her lower back.
Her campaign was brought to an early close for the second year in a row, after she had broken her hip in a crash during a time trial race in October last year.
“Bronze medal, top 10 and fractured sacrum. Mixed week for me at worlds,” Moolman-Pasio posted on social media.
Earlier at the eight-day spectacle, which ended on Sunday, she had joined her Cervelo Bigla trade team as they charged to third place in the elite women’s time trial.
The 29-year-old rider became the first South African woman to earn two career medals at the global championships, after picking up bronze in the same event last year.
Moolman-Pasio went on to grab seventh spot in the individual time trial contest.
The rest of the SA team struggled against the world’s elite.
Daryl Impey missed out on his third medal in the team time trial, ending fifth with the Orica-Scott squad.
Rynardt van Rensburg was the best performer in the elite men’s road race, finishing 39th, and Willie Smit was 49th in the individual time trial.