Giro della Toscana #1: Victory for Steve Cummings!

Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka got off to a fantastic start in Giro della Toscana as Steve Cummings sprinted to victory after a late attack on the opening stage.

With a strong and versatile team, it was no surprise to see Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka taking control of the stage early on. A group of four riders managed to get away after 15 km, but the quartet was never allowed a gap of more than just a couple of minutes.

Having both Mark Cavendish and Ryan Gibbons as key players for a possible sprint finish, the team made sure to always keep the breakaway within reach and with about 40 km left to go, it all came back together again. From here on, it didn’t take long before the inevitable counterattacks began. Cummings joined one of the strongest moves together with Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida), Egan Bernal (Androni-Sidermec) and Frederik Backaert (Wanty-Groupe Gobert).

The small but powerful group quickly got a gap of nearly one minute on the peloton before the pack could organize a chase. Taking on the last lap of 7.7 km, the gap came down to just over half a minute but despite a furious chase behind, the break managed to keep the pack at bay and fight for victory.

In the final, Cummings timed his sprint to perfection as he passed his rivals on the final meters to take both the stage win and the overall lead of Giro della Toscana. Tomorrow, the Italian two-days event concludes with a mountain top finish to Volterra.

Steve Cummings:
“I wasn’t really feeling super today, having missed so much racing. I couldn’t follow on the explosive climb so I just stayed calm, waited and then went full gas after the climb. It turned out to be a good tactic. Towards the end, we were going so fast at the front that there wasn’t an opportunity to split the group so I just waited for the sprint. I let it all out there and I’m just really happy now”.
 

Team Dimension Data For Qhubeka

Founded in 2007, Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka became the first ever African cycling team to gain a WorldTour license, in 2016. In the team’s palmares you can find a Milan-Sanremo victory, numerous stage wins at the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana, two Tour of Britain GC victories, and 36 National Championships. The team has bases in South Africa, the Netherlands and Italy. It’s also known as Africa’s Team due to its focus on helping African talents to the world stage of cycling. The team races to raise funds for the Qhubeka Charity to change lives with bicycles in Africa. #DoYourPart and gift a bicycle or part of a bicycle, by clicking here.

Qhubeka is an Nguni word that means “to progress”, “to move forward”. Qhubeka (qhubeka.org) partners with communities, public sector, private sector, and non-profit organisations to provide people with bicycles in return for working to improve their community, environment or school attendance. 

Dimension Data (dimensiondata.com) uses the power of technology to help organisations achieve great things in the digital era. As a member of the NTT Group, we accelerate our clients’ ambitions through digital infrastructure, hybrid cloud, workspaces for tomorrow, and cybersecurity. With a turnover of USD 7.5 billion, offices in 58 countries, and 31,000 employees, we deliver wherever our clients are, at every stage of their technology journey. We’re proud to be the Official Technology Partner of Amaury Sport Organisation, organiser of the Tour de France, and the title partner of the cycling team, Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka.

Learn more about the team at www.africasteam.com. 

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