Christopher Blevins/Matt Beers (Toyota Specialized - Ninety One) were 90 seconds back in the men's overall on the final day of the Cape Epic, but Nino Schluter/Andri Frischknecht (Scott-Slam MTB Racing) on stage 7 reversed the lead with an early attack.

Meanwhile, in the women's category, Vera Rouzer and Kim Lecourt (Efficient Infinity Insua) did well, and the Namibian-Mauritian duo had a strong final stage to win the race, with Grete Steinburg and Monica Juliana Calderon-Martinez ( Cannondale Vas Alabay) in second place. This was more than enough to hold off Amy Wakefield and Candice Lill (e-FORT.net-SeattleCoffeeCo) in the overall battle.

Men's overall winners Blevins and Beers also finished second in the final stage behind 2022 winners Georg Eger and Lucas Baum (ORBEA x Leatt x Speed Company), but it was the early climb in Lourensford that contributed greatly to the overall battle It was when they pulled away from Schluter and Frischknecht. This was the point at which they began to build the gap needed to win the overall of this 648km South African mountain bike stage race.

"After last night I knew there was only one way to win today. We trained hard for this race and went through a lot this week. When everything goes as well as it did today, it's very special and satisfying."

"We knew we were leading because we had heard bits and pieces of news from the route, but we didn't really know. The only answer is to keep running as hard as you can. It was a struggle from start to finish, but it was worth it and we are honored to win the Absa Cape Epic."

The pair started the day in the leader's jersey after the prologue, but finished the windy first stage in 12th place, dropping down the order the next day.

"It was a great victory, not only today, but all week long," said the team leader. We had to come out of a really dark situation after the battle on the first stage, but I think it shows the strength of our partnership and how much we believe in each other. We both really helped each other this week

"We had a lot of spectators cheering us on. I think the last stage was pure adrenaline. I'm completely spent."

Egger and Baum's victory on stage 7 moved them into second place overall for the men, 3:50 behind Beers and Blevins, while Schluter and Frischknecht, who finished fifth on the final stage, dropped to third overall, 4:12 behind.

In the women's race, Wakefield and Lille held the lead from the first stage despite Wakefield's overnight surgery for an upper arm injury, but Rouzer and Le Court began to close the gap with back-to-back wins on stages 4 and 5, and their third win on stage 6 put them in the overall lead They moved into the overall lead with their third win on stage 6. On stage 7, it looked as if they would win a fourth stage, but they slowed down at the finish line in Val de Vier Estate, handing the day's win to Steinburg and Calderon, who took the overall win in second place.

"I feel really great," said Steinburg. It's been a long hard week and I really needed to dig deep, and I think I need time to let this sink in for a week or two."

Wakefield and Lill suffered not only injuries, but also a broken rim early in stage 6. Nevertheless, the pair held on to second place overall, finishing more than 32 minutes behind Le Court and Rouzer, but with a comfortable lead of more than 11 minutes over the Ninety One Specialized pair of Sofia Gomez Villafane and Katerina Nash.

"I felt very bleak yesterday," Wakefield said. But when I saw the messages on social media, I burst into tears. I was so moved by the support. I couldn't make up for what happened to us this week.