ATTAKWAS EXTREME BECOMES WORLD’S RICHEST SINGLE-DAY UCI MARATHON

South Africa’s premier one-day mountain bike marathon, the Momentum Medical Scheme Attakwas Extreme, presented by Biogen, celebrates its twenty-first edition with a significant increase in prize money. Fabled as the toughest day on a bike in a country obsessed with endurance sports events, the Hell of the South has earned its reputation multiple times over. Now, thanks to the continuity provided by the partnership extension of title sponsor Momentum Medical Scheme and presenting sponsor Biogen, the organisers, Dryland Event Management, have been able to boost the total prize purse to 18 400 USD. The UCI Men’s and UCI Women’s race winners will each ride away with 6 000 USD, making it the biggest payday on the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon calendar.

Paid partnership with Dryland Event Management

“For twenty years, the Momentum Medical Scheme Attakwas Extreme presented by Biogen has asked professional cyclists a simple question: can you survive it? From 16 January 2027, it will ask a second one. Can you afford not to be there?” Henco Rademeyer, of Dryland Event Management, stated.

“We have spent twenty years building the hardest one-day race in the world. That part is settled. What we are announcing today is the next twenty. The Hell of the South will be the richest one-day marathon in the world. We are not there yet. Leadville, which is not UCI-affiliated, currently pays $10 000 to the men’s and women’s winners. But we’ve made the decision to get there, and Momentum Medical Scheme and Biogen have made it possible to start now. This is the first instalment.”

The 2027 edition UCI Men’s and Women’s race winners will receive 6 000 USD each, which equates to roughly 96 000 ZAR (at R16.00 per USD*). Equal prize money will be paid to both the UCI Men’s and Women’s competitors, with first to fifth in both categories receiving a share of the 18 400 USD (294 400 ZAR*) purse. The King and Queen of the Mountain prizes, for the first man and woman to reach the summit of the Attakwaskloof climb 55 kilometres into the 120-kilometre course, will also be denominated in US Dollars from 2027, and each hotspot prize winner will receive 200 USD.

“The Attakwas Extreme has never been a race that trades on hype. It is a genuinely hard bike race that people choose to participate in, and finish with pride, and sign up for again knowing just how tough it is,” said Damian McHugh, Group Head of Marketing at Momentum Medical Scheme. “That is the kind of event we, as Momentum, are proud to sponsor, and our long-term commitment confirms as much. Raising the prize money to this level is the right next step; the athletes who race the Hell of the South earn every cent of it.”

“Through our work alongside multiple professional mountain bike riders and broader brand ambassadors, we know exactly what it takes to compete at and complete the Momentum Medical Scheme Attakwas Extreme, presented by Biogen. It’s definitely South Africa’s toughest single-day cycling event, and one of the world’s hardest too,” Brandon Fairweather, Head of Brand at Biogen, stated. “There is no shortcut through the Attakwaskloof. The heat, the trail surfaces, and the climbing all combine to challenge riders to the limit. We love fuelling athletes to pursue the results you want, and our commitment to helping riders conquer the Attakwas will remain part of that for another three years.”

“You cannot buy a start list. You earn it, over decades, by staging a race that professionals respect and amateurs are proud to finish,” Rademeyer noted. “The Momentum Medical Scheme Attakwas Extreme, presented by Biogen, has always attracted South Africa’s top XCM riders, and while the world’s best has taken part too, we’d love to see the sport’s biggest names racing each other through the Attakwaskloof every January. The increase in prize money is a carrot to all the professional riders training in Stellenbosch during the northern hemisphere winter, an incentive to inspire them to race.”

The format of the event allows amateur cyclists to challenge themselves over the same course as the elite race. The current course record of 4 hours, 25 minutes and 10 seconds was set by Alan Hatherly in 2026, while Annika Langvad’s women’s record of 5 hours 25 minutes and 55 seconds has stood since 2017. Limited entries to the 2027 edition are available through the race website, www.atta.co.za. Along with the full 120-kilometre Extreme, the event also hosts a 47-kilometre Half and a 32-kilometre Mini, which are the ideal distances for junior marathon racing enthusiasts.

For insights into what it takes to conquer the Hell of the South, follow @attakwasmtb on Instagram or like the Momentum Medical Scheme Attakwas Extreme, presented by Biogen, Facebook page.

*All prize money is denominated in US Dollars. The South African Rand value stated in this document was taken at the exchange rate of 16.00 ZAR to the USD in September 2026.

Paid partnership with Dryland Event Management