Belgian Solar Team convincingly in the lead on eve of blood-curdling final stage

In the lead

The Belgians started today with an 84-kilometer lead. They were able to build this lead two days ago after making the bold strategic choice to cover 100 kilometers more in one day than their rivals. In doing so, they broke the race's daily record for the second time: 703 kilometers. Never before has a team been able to cover so many kilometers in a single day of competition. Today, the team from Twente was able to make up 27 kilometers. The Leuven students will thus start tomorrow's final day of competition with a lead of 57 kilometers.

Blind stage

Today's route was only announced yesterday evening. This created some additional challenges. Due to the unknown route, no estimate could be made in advance of the energy consumption during this stage. Last-minute strategic decisions had to be made. The Belgians opted to ride slower to save energy for the tough final stage tomorrow. The team from Twente chose a different strategy and was able to catch up for 27 kilometers. Tomorrow will show which team made the right choice.

Final sprint

Tomorrow is the final day of the Sasol Solar Challenge. The teams will set sail for Cape Town. During the final stage, the students will have to climb some tough hills and face heavy traffic on the way to Cape Town. Today, the engineering students conserved energy by driving more slowly. With this energy, the team members hope to successfully complete tomorrow's stage and cross the finish line as winners.

Sasol Solar Challenge

The Sasol Solar Challenge will take place from Sept. 13 to 20 in South Africa and is considered the most extreme solar challenge. It is the second time for the Belgian Solar Team to participate in this unique challenge. Student teams from around the world will be challenged here to cover as much distance as possible on solar energy in eight days. The students hope to cover more than 4,000 km during the eight-day race. The challenging course through South Africa provides the team members with a strategic challenge. The Belgians are competing there as reigning world champions. The challenge ends tomorrow at 3 p.m.