Orland credits hard work for African sweep

CAPE TOWN. Stav Orland was Uganda’s best performer at the Motorcoss of All African Nations (MXOAN) event in South Africa.

Stav was dominant in the MX category, winning all three heats for the overall title in that class despite Uganda finishing fifth in the overall standings.

He credits his training regime and hard work as the key factors.

Also, Stav, unlike his colleagues within the Ugandan team, had had a chance to race in the South African championship prior.  

“Exposure is critical for any rider to race at different grounds,” Stav said.

“I am privileged to have trained and raced against the best in South Africa. It gave me an edge over other riders. Honestly, my training and hard work have paid off."

The entire team was proud to see him beat South Africans in their own backyard.

"I encourage other riders to get more exposure, test different race tracks. It's the only way they can compete with other super nations," Stav explained.

There were other commendable performances for Uganda in the 65CC, 125 CC and MX Lite categories.

Jude Kyle Musedde made the podium in the 50CC during heat one. South Africa dominated the 1-2-3 positions in all junior classes plus seniors.

Team leader Reynolds Kibira felt the hosts played dirty but Uganda overcame most of the tests. Their bikes were delivered at the last hour on Saturday, thus riders didn't have enough time on their bikes before racing.

"I would like to thank Team Uganda. You have overcome so much. First, the uncertainty of the bikes stack at the airport for days. You did not have the benefit of testing the sandy track beforehand,” Kibira lamented.

“You only had one practice session on day one and also stomached the scary incident of one of the team members and podium hopeful Fortune Ssentamu,” he told the team here in Cape Town.

Uganda managed to finish second overall in 65CC, 125CC and MX2 classes but were fifth overall. Three years ago, this team was third behind South Africa and Zimbabwe but ahead of Zambia and Namibia.

The 2024 edition will be held in Morocco who fielded only three riders this year. 

MXOAN

Overall standings

1. South Africa     728

2.Zimbabwe          384

3.Zambia               233

4.Namibia             206

5.Uganda              191

6.Kenya                 155

7.Botswana          82

8.Madagascar      27

9.Morocco            8

10.Lesotho           0