Jaedon Terlouw delivered the upset of the day at the ninth King Price Race to the Sun gravel event in South Africa on Saturday, crossing the finish line in Sun City in 04:11:55. Cape Epic champion and pre-race favourite Tristan Nortje finished 1 minute 11 seconds later, while Jan Withaar completed the podium in 04:14:16.
Terlouw is regarded as one of South Africa’s best all-round cyclists, competing simultaneously across MTB marathon, XCO, road, and gravel disciplines. His 2026 season had already included a near miss on the road at the Cape Town Cycle Tour in March, where recently retired WorldTour professional Ryan Gibbons only narrowly held him off. On Saturday, however, there was no one to deny him.
Jordan Boshoff finished fourth in 04:17:53, with Ryan Gibbons — racing gravel for the first time — right behind in fifth at 04:17:55. Christian Klopper (04:18:51), Gustav Roller (04:18:52), and Travis Rademan-Ludeke (04:18:52) completed a tightly packed top eight.
The women’s race produced one of the closest finishes in the event’s history. Samantha Sanders claimed victory in 04:50:01, edging Lisa Bone by just two seconds. Now 42, Sanders is enjoying the best form of her career remarkably late. She won the Attakwas Extreme — South Africa’s notorious 120-kilometre “Hell of the South” MTB race — in both 2024 and 2025, and in May 2025 finally secured the South African Marathon MTB Championship title after finishing runner-up in 2022 and 2024.
Sarah Maré, the 2023 Race to the Sun champion and Sanders’ Efficient Infiniti Insure teammate, completed the podium in 04:51:14, 1 minute 13 seconds behind. Taneal Otto (05:00:40), and Maude Elaine Le Roux (05:01:47) rounded out the top five finishers.
With the South African Gravel Championships just two weeks away, Saturday’s results have reshuffled the expectations over who could take the national title.
King Price Race to the Sun results HERE
Photo Credit: King Price Race to the Sun
© 2026 Copyright Gran Fondo Daily News – All Rights Reserved