- Today, on the sidelines of stage 7 from Saint-Malo to Mûr-de-Bretagne, the Tour de France and the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) turned the spotlight on African cycling.
- This morning, twelve U23 riders from Africa backed by the World Cycling Centre (WCC) —the training and education centre of the International Federation— were brought up onto the sign-in podium and rubbed shoulders with the biggest names in the Tour, including Biniam Girmay, before heading to Mûr-de-Bretagne to ride on the final circuit and watch the finish of the pro race.
- A Rwandan delegation from the organising committee was also in attendance with just a few weeks to go until the first-ever UCI Road World Championships on African soil take place in Kigali, Rwanda.
- The Tour de France will also be throwing its weight behind the charity Qhubeka on Nelson Mandela Day, Friday, 18 July, during the time trial from Loudenvielle to Peyragudes. On that day, the Rwandan rider Adrien Niyonshuti will take on the 10.9 km course on the exact same bicycle that has been donated to nearly 2,500 African schoolchildren since 2018 to help them travel to school.
A TWENTY-FOURTH TEAM ON THE ROADS OF THE TOUR
Last year, the Eritrean Biniam Girmay made Tour de France history, becoming the first Black African rider to take a stage win (three victories in total) and defending the green jersey all the way to Nice. Following in his slipstream, twelve young African talents from across the continent*, backed by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), stepped into the limelight of the Tour de France between Saint-Malo and Mûr-de-Bretagne today.
Acting as symbolic representatives of an unofficial twenty-fourth team, a mixed African squad, they were presented to the Tour crowds at the start before having the chance to meet the movers and shakers of the peloton, including Biniam Girmay, whose performance in the last Tour de France earned him hero status from Cape Angela to Cape Agulhas. The riders, who are on a training camp in Brittany as part of a European racing programme run by the UCI WCC, had front-row seats for the finish in Mûr-de-Bretagne. Earlier in the day, the seven men rode the final 15 kilometres of the finishing circuit ahead of the peloton, while the six women will get their day in the sun on Saturday, 26 July, when they will inaugurate the final circuit of stage 1 to Plumelec ahead of the stars of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.
RWANDA LOOMING LARGE
To make precious memories of this day fraught with emotions, the twelve young riders proudly climbed onto the official podium in Mûr-de-Bretagne, clutching yellow and rainbow jerseys in a symbolic link between the Tour de France and the first-ever UCI Road World Championships on African soil, which will take place in Kigali, Rwanda, a few weeks from now (21 to 28 September).
The event took place in the presence of an official Rwandan delegation, led by the President of the Rwandan Cycling Federation (FERWACY), Samson Ndayishimiye, who was there to promote this historic championship for the entire African continent, set to unfold in the "Land of a Thousand Hills".
SOLIDARITY WITH AFRICA
Africa will again take centre stage on Friday, 18 July, during Nelson Mandela Day, which coincides with stage 13 of the Tour de France. The race will show its support for the charity Qhubeka. The Rwandan rider Adrien Niyonshuti will tackle the 10.9 km individual time trial from Loudenvielle to Peyragudes on an iconic Qhubeka bicycle like the ones that the Tour de France has donated to nearly 2,500 schoolchildren since 2018 to help them travel to school. A two-time Olympian, Niyonshuti already represented Qhubeka at the Tour de France in 2022, when he conquered the legendary slopes of Alpe d’Huez. He will roll down the start ramp at 12:15 pm, ahead of the pros, to take on this brutal climb.
David Lappartient, President of the Union Cycliste Internationale:
"Weeks out from the first-ever UCI Road World Championships to be held in Africa, it is fantastic to see young, up-and-coming riders from the continent soaking up the atmosphere of the Tour de France and taking part in this event. The Union Cycliste Internationale and its World Cycling Centre (UCI WCC) have developed and implemented a robust strategy to prepare these young cyclists for the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Kigali, Rwanda. This singular experience during stage 11 of the Tour, which will continue in a few days in the opener of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, is an extra boost of motivation for these talented riders who are zooming up the learning curve. The UCI and the UCI WCC have been supporting African cyclists for many years and continue to follow the inspiring progression of former trainees such as Daniel Teklehaimanot, Merhawi Kudus and, of course, Biniam Girmay, the winner of the green jersey last year, who trained with us at the UCI WCC in Aigle, Switzerland, back in 2019."
Christian Prudhomme, Director of the Tour de France:
"Last year, Biniam Girmay wrote a new chapter in the history of the Tour de France, a race increasingly more open to Africa, following in the wheel tracks of African trailblazers such as Robert Hunter, Daryl Impey, Daniel Teklehaimanot and Merhawi Kudus. We have been striving for several years to strengthen the bond between elite cycling and everyday cycling, and this nod to Africa is fully in line with that vision, both to inspire the young riders who will become the champions of tomorrow and to empower thousands of others through cycling, thanks to the solidarity initiatives that we support alongside the charity Qhubeka."
