Hans Becking (Buff Megamo) and Maddy Nutt won the Safari Gravel Event on Saturday, the Kenyan round of the Trek UCI Gravel World Series which took competitors through the Hell’s Gate National Park in Naivasha - a location which inspired the Lion King.
In the men's race, Becking came across the line ahead of German rider Lukas Baum (Speed Company) and American Chad Haga (PAS Racing) was third.
The Dutch winner commented on Instagram that the race delivered a "good battle with friends on a sandy route. Happy to sneak away with the win!" To which Haga replied: "There's nothing sneaky about going so fast that nobody can keep up!"
In the women's race British rider Nutt held on for a solo win ahead of Rwanda's Xaverine Nirere (Team Amani) and in third it was US rider Amity Rockwell (Pas Racing)
"Without a doubt the toughest course I’ve raced, with miles of leg-sapping deep sand, and slippy and rough descents," said Nutt in an Instagram post. "I was in the lead early on in the race before coming down pretty dramatically on some deep sand. I thought my race could be over, but quickly got back on and pushed to move back forwards."
"I had 12.5km to go, and the biggest result of my cycling career within sight, but both my calves, my foot and a quad were cramping and I didn’t know if I could get to the line before being caught, unable to push any power through my pedals," added Nutt. "My earlier efforts were enough to have created a big enough gap, and I crossed the line tearful and overwhelmed."
The field was packed with international competitors, that are next week set to take on the four-stage Migration Gravel Race from June 18-21, and started at Elsa's Gate before taking on a 90% gravel course.
| Position | Rider |
|---|---|
| 1 | Hans Becking |
| 2 | Lukas Baum |
| 3 | Chad Haga |
| Position | Rider |
|---|---|
| 1 | Maddy Nutt |
| 2 | Xaverine Nirere |
| 3 | Amity Rockwell |
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