In a carbon copy of the stage 24-hours previous, Hunter again topped the result sheets, with Graeme Brown (Rabobank) and Vicente Reynes (HTC-Columbia) filling the next two places.

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Robbie Hunter (Garmin - Transitions) sprinted to victory in the Tour of Murcia's opening stage today, taking his first win of the season and the US ProTour team's first on European soil. The 32-year-old South African bested Graeme Brown (Rabobank) and Vicente Reynes (HTC - Columbia) at the finish in San Pedro del Pinatar, denying Brown the opportunity to win Murcia's first stage for the third consecutive year.

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South Africa's Jay Thomson did his country proud today when he won the  second stage of the Tour de Langkawi.

A strong team, each rider with the ability to be the team leader, is representing South Africa during this 2.HC event in Malaysia. They will have the ability to protect Thomson's position and hopefully aim for the leader's yellow jersey, next.

All the information on the tour and results can be found on www.ltdl.com.my

http://www.cycletournz.com/womenstour/Results/STAGE4/tabid/741/Default.aspx

The Cycling SA Toyota U23 Academy Team will be participating in the upcoming Giro del Capo National Tour.  Christopher Jennings has already left the country to Belgium, where he will be based until September this year and was not available for selection.  Johann van Zyl, Shaun-Nick Bester and Songezo Jim, 3 very familiar faces of the academy, received invitations to other teams. This created additional opportunities for other riders to be identified by the selectors.

The riders that have been selected:

JC Nel

Paul van Zweel

HB Kruger

Jean Spies

David Brown

Denzil Afrika

The Giro del Capo will take place from 9 to 12 March and will follow similar routes as previous editions.

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Leading results after today's stage two of the Tour of New Zealand women's cycling race:

Masterton to Palmerston North, 114km: Shelley Evans (USA) 3hr 12min 58sec 1, Xin Liu (China, Giant) at 4sec 2, Yiu Wong Wan (China, Giant) at 7sec 3, Amanda Spratt (Australia, AIS) at 11sec 4, Ruth Corset (Australia, Nashua) same time 5, Kaytee Boyd (New Zealand) st 6, Sara Mustonen (Sweden, Hitec) st 7, Masami Morita (Japan) st 8, Cherise Taylor (South Africa, Nashua) 9, Joanne Kiesanowski (New Zealand) st 10.

General classification after two stages: Evans 6hr 02min 17sec 1, Ruth Corset (Australia, Nashua) at 14sec 2, Xin at same time 3, Cherise Taylor (South Africa, Nashua) at 16sec 4, Linda Villumsen (New Zealand) at 20sec 5, Masami Morita (Japan) st 6, Rie Katayama st 7, Spratt st 8, Tiffany Cromwell (Australia, AIS) st 9, Mustonen st 10.

One of the Life Cycling Academy’s top riders, Luthando Kaka, has been offered a contract with a top South African road cycling team. He formally joined Team Medscheme on February 22 this year.

www.teammedscheme.co.za/

A R100 000 donation last year by the Vodacom Foundation has given BMX training and racing at the Velokhaya BMX Oval a major boost. The funds were used to purchase BMX equipment for the more than 100 young cyclists training and competing at the Velokhaya BMX Oval. Before receiving the new kit, riders had to stop riding to exchange and share kit (racing pants and shirts) and protection gear (gloves, helmets and knee guards), which hampered their training efforts. According to Mthobi Tyamzashe, Chairman of the Vodacom Foundation: “It was a pleasure for the Vodacom Foundation to enable the children from Khayelitsha to participate in the programmes of the Velokhaya BMX Oval. We trust that the equipment purchased will enable the over 100 beneficiaries to realize their dreams in their chosen sport.” The Velokhaya BMX Oval has, since it opened a year ago in November 2008, become a popular - and important - recreational facility for the children of Khayelitsha. “It really has become a place where our children can have fun and learn new skills in a secure, safe environment,” says Velokhaya’s Amos Ziqubu. (The donation was made possible through the intervention of Johannesburg-based cyclist and business executive, Mthunzi Mdwaba, who introduced the Vodacom Foundation to Velokhaya).

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Tour of New Zealand stage 1 results:
1 Shelley Evans USA
2 Ruth Corset AUS
3 Cherise Taylor RSA

Regrettably, Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio is out with a suspected collarbone. More info as it happens on twitter.com/roadCyclingSA

Results c/o www.cycletournz.com/womenstour

Cycling South Africa (CSA) has confirmed that top sprinter, Nolan Hoffman, has been handed an 18-month suspension from racing by an Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel that convened in Bloemfontein on 3 February 2010.

Hoffman returned a positive test for unacceptably high levels of the hormone Testosterone, following the scrutiny of a sample taken from him on 18 October 2009.

The sentence for this type of contravention of UCI and CSA anti-doping code normally carries a two-year ban, but Hoffman admitted guilt, showed remorse for his actions and gave the hearing panel his full co-operation. They subsequently reduced the suspension by six months dating back to the date of sample collection.

"CSA has entered a new era which includes raising the standard of our riders so that they are able to have a realistic chance at challenging for international titles. Our riders need to take responsibility for their own actions and Nolan Hoffman's case confirms our intentions to clean up professional cycling in line with the relentless global moves in that direction," explained Greg Till, CSA President.

Twenty-four-year-old Hoffman is one of the country's biggest development success stories, having gone from a promising youngster to one of the top riders in the country in just a few years. He is a former South African Under-23 road race champion and has held multiple national track titles. He is a regular podium finisher at most of the country's leading road races and has in recent years finished on podiums at international stage races, including victory in the opening stage of the 2009 Tour de Korea.

Hoffman was racing for the Neotel professional team at the time of his positive test and was immediately dismissed from the team. Neotel then withdrew its sponsorship from professional road cycling in early 2010, but has maintained its support of the Neotel Development Academy.

"CSA has been working alongside Drug Free Sport South Africa for the past couple of years in an effort to clean up cycling.  We have a zero-tolerance policy on the use of banned performance-enhancing methods and will continue to ensure an increased number of tests are conducted among all the cycle racing disciplines in 2010," added Till.

ENDS.

For more information on Cycling South Africa and its anti-doping fight, visit www.cyclingsa.com or call 021 5571212.