American Kate Courtney and her Italian partner Greta Seiwald (She Sends Foundation) secured their first stage win of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic on Thursday, winning Stage 4 in Greyton in a dramatic sprint finish.
After finishing second on every stage until now, the pair completed the 61km route with 1450m of climbing in 2 hours 56 minutes 37 seconds, edging overall leaders Candice Lill and Alessandra Keller (Thömus Maxon Sabi Sabi) by just two seconds.
The race began at a steadier pace before the leading teams began to assert themselves on the approach to the UFO climb. There was little to separate the top two teams as they crested the final hill and headed into the descent.
On the tight singletrack near the finish, Seiwald accelerated away while Courtney held up the orange jersey wearers behind. The move proved decisive as the pair secured the stage win.
“We had been discussing tactics and various scenarios, and it worked out perfectly,” said Seiwald. “I still can’t believe we won and we will definitely celebrate with some cake today.”
Lill acknowledged the tactical nature of the finish after their four-stage winning streak came to an end.
“Today they really played it well into the finish,” she said. “Kate was really strong because we sat on her wheel for most of the last 10km and she was still able to get the better of us at the finish. Yes, there was some blocking, fighting for position and putting feet down at times, but I guess that’s racing.”
Crash Drama in the Podium Battle
Behind the leaders, the fight for third place took a dramatic turn. Rosa Van Doorn and Vera Looser (Buff-BH Efficient Infiniti) were in contention when Van Doorn crashed on the descent after the final UFO climb, gashing her knee and losing a tooth.
She was unable to continue, leaving Looser to complete the stage alone. The incident handed third place on the stage to Hayley Preen and Haley Smith (Chemchamp Honeycomb), who also cemented their third place overall.
Gaze and Schwarzbauer Capitalise in Men’s Race
In the men’s race, Sam Gaze of New Zealand and Germany’s Luca Schwarzbauer (Canyon) claimed their second stage win after a crash in the leading group reshaped the outcome.
The 87km stage with 1750m of climbing saw the race split on the final climb before the decisive moment came on the Middelplaas descent. Wout Alleman (Buff-BH) crashed heavily, holding up South African Tristan Nortje, who had to chase back to his partner Matt Beers.
The delay saw the South African pair lose ground to the leading teams of Gaze and Schwarzbauer and overall leaders Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto (Wilier-Vittoria), eventually finishing third.
Up front, Schwarzbauer crossed the line first with Gaze just behind to secure the win, while Braidot and Avondetto retained the overall lead and extended their advantage to 1 minute 37 seconds.
“It was a really hard final with that climb,” said Gaze. “That last descent was very loose… it was just full gas from then on.”
Stage 5
With three hard stages remaining, the race continues on Friday as riders head into Stage 5 of the 2026 Absa Cape Epic.
