“If Kenya and Africa can properly tap into Chris’ success, then I think a huge racing culture could develop,” says Walsh.

“More sponsors are entering the sport all the time – and more people are doing it recreationally.

“The sport of cycling is flourishing amongst the middle class in Africa – it’s considered the new golf.”

The New Golf

It’s the same phrase Bellairs used when I spoke with him the day before.

Bellairs is convinced that the emerging black middle and upper classes in South Africa hold the key to sustained growth in cycling.

“The problems we have in South Africa is that cycling traditionally has not been the desired mode of transport of the poor. When you look at the rest of Africa, the bicycle is the primary mode of transport because it’s cheap, where as in South Africa it’s perceived as the poor man’s mode of transport.

“That is changing, but one needs to first change the culture of cycling to make it an acceptable means of transport.

“In South Africa it’s the CEOs and chief operating officers and financial directors who are participating in the sport as a hobby – these are the people we term ‘healthy outdoor lifestyle individuals’.

“What we’re seeing is more of black executives riding bikes than playing golf. That’s huge because on the one hand you need sporting icons to hold up – and we have those in some of our young black riders who are coming through – but you also need a certain sector of the community to be seen to be cycling to make it seem cool. So when the black CEO of a multinational is seen riding his bike, suddenly it becomes acceptable.

“If you went into the townships in South Africa dressed in Lycra 15 years ago, they would have thought you were stark raving mad, but now you can go into those same townships wearing Lycra and you are cool, you are somebody to look up to.”

Bellairs says there is also a shift towards making the country’s cities and towns more cycle-friendly.

“What they’re doing now is starting to put infrastructure in that allows people from more rural areas to cycle safely into town,” he says.

“Cape Town is at the forefront of driving commuter cycling in that they’ve invested significantly in infrastructure for bicycles. Durban follows behind that but, in reality, here in South Africa we have other priorities – we have health as a priority, education as a priority.

“We don’t have the budgets for cycling that you see in Europe – we have some huge priorities that don’t revolve around white people riding bicycles.

“But as more and more of our black community moves into the middle and upper classes and these people are exposed to different sports and have more disposable income, then we’ll see this continue to change as cycling becomes more aspirational.

“Cycle sport isn’t like running – you can just buy a pair of shoes and go out for a trot. The barrier to entry is a lot higher with cycling – you need a bike and then the helmet and the shoes and then the clothes, so as a result it pitches itself at a certain section of the community, and that’s the section with higher disposable income.

“You’re looking at between 6 and 10,000 rand for an entry level, bottom of the range bike with kit and helmet. A reasonably top-end bike will set you back close to 100,000 rand.

“We know there are half a million bikes sold in South Africa every year, and that cuts across from rural areas with entry level bikes for farm laborers through to top-end hand-built Italian carbon fibre bikes. It’s big business.”

This potential is evident in the move into cycling by The Pro Shop owner MoreGolf.

In September last year, MoreGolf bought the country’s leading cycle retailer, Cycle Lab, along with a number of other cycling-related businesses. The golf and cycling businesses are now housed under the MoreCorp umbrella.

MoreGolf MD, Rhys Hughes, says the company plans to bring to the bike market the same dynamic approach that has seen it dominate the golf scene.

“We have achieved in excess of 30% growth over the last three years,” he says.

“With the sport of cycling on such an impressive growth curve, there is definitely a gap in the market to provide a one-stop solution to enthusiasts at all levels, from recreational to professional.”

While road cycling might be riding a Tour de France-inspired wave, mountain biking in South Africa continues to boom.

World Cup and Marathon World Championship events this year showcased the country’s excellent off-road facilities and brought billions of rand into tourism coffers, particularly in KwaZulu Natal, where Pietermaritzburg enjoys a reputation as a cycling hub.

The province says it was expecting to reap a R79-million reward for its R24-million investment in cycling events over the last three years, plus a further R1.68-billion in terms of marketing exposure.

Bellairs, though, says cycling has the potential to generate much more than profit margins or tourism dollars.

His annual Argus event raises in the region of 10 million rand for (mostly) bike-based charity projects, however its ripple effect reaches further.

“We estimate that charities that buy entries from us will put three times that back into the community,” he says. “So we estimate that somewhere between 25 and 35 million rand over and above what we do is raised by the 120-odd charities that had an allotment of entries for this year’s cycle tour.

“Our ambition is to take that and turn it into 50 or 60 million rand. Then what you’re seeing is a massive double-edged sword: people riding bikes, which is keeping them fit and healthy, but it also results in a massive amount of good being done in communities.

“I think the Froome and Impey effect in the South African context is that it’s exposed more and more people to the sport of cycling.

“Where they’d usually be watching cricket and rugby they’re watching cycling and then they’re getting out there and participating – and that can only be good for Africa and for African cycling.”

Lyn Eyb is a regular contributor to AFKInsider. She is also the editor of the cycling website, Freewheeling France.