Cycling Africa (2025) Movie Script
This is Africa's World Championship.
This is going to impact from south
to north and from east to west.
The World Championship is
in Rwanda this year.
It's pivotal.
It could go either way.
The goal is to use the
World Championships in Africa
as a real opportunity
to go for the rainbow jersey.
I would like to be the next Biniam,
because he's that type of guy.
Everyone is looking at Africa.
The history maker, Biniam Girmay,
the rising star of Africa.
You made history, you made history.
You know for Africa,
you know it, Binnie.
The goal was not to bring,
I would say our peloton to Africa
and to be back,
the goal was clearly to have
this championship in Africa,
but for Africa.
And on to the Mur de Kigali.
It's a cobbled classic job this,
in the heart of Africa.
Stay calm, stay safe.
People will be able to frame it.
The future of African cycling
isn't coming. It's already here.
It'll put Africa on the map.
Good morning, Kigali. It's 6:00 a.m.
The sun is rising over the land
of a thousand hills,
and it is a very special day today.
The UCI is expected to formally
announce Rwanda
as the host of the 2025 Road
World Cycling Championships.
First and foremost, I'm proud
that the World Championships
will come to Kigali in Africa.
First time,
I think it's a very, very big feat.
Now, 2025 will be the year
of cycling in Africa.
The 2025 World Road
Cycling Championships
will be held in Rwanda.
All other continents
have already hosted
the Road World Championships
except Africa.
Yes, African coffee, African tea.
Put well water in the bottle.
Aren't you going to the club house?
I am going.
Are you going to mingle posho?
-No, this water is for a shower.
-Is it good for you?
-To shower with hot water?
-Yes, why not?
My name is Nantume Miria,
from Uganda.
Cyclist from Masaka Cycling Club.
I started cycling in 2020.
The reason why my mother
took me to cycling was
because by then I had many groups.
She was scared that I'll get spoiled.
She didn't like the sport, but took
me to the sport just to take time,
not to be in bad peer groups.
That's how I started cycling.
I asked her if she could really
manage doing it being a girl.
Those from her paternal side,
had refused to let her cycle,
claiming girls do not ride bicycles.
But as a mother,
when I learned it was her passion,
I allowed her to go and try.
It was so amazing that when she went,
she was even being paid.
She started bringing money home.
We use this money
to take care of the home.
All of us started loving cycling.
Even those who didn't like it.
Miria came to South Africa
and we recognized her as a talent
through Masaka Cycling Club
in the Uganda Cycling Association.
Where I have brought you is where
I usually come for my recoveries.
Maybe when I'm sad at times, I come
here, I just listen to the nature.
I just feel the vibes of the nature.
Like now, I just feel it.
Everything is good.
I don't have any stress.
I'm just looking at the plants,
at the sunset,
listening to the cow's voice.
Everything is good.
Hi, I am JP Van Zyl.
I'm a fan of African cycling
and I work for the World Cycling
Center in Switzerland
doing the development
on the African continent.
Owen and his team told me
Miria's really talented,
that she needs to deserve a place
to come to the training camp
in Paarl, in South Africa.
We did that prior to the Africa
Championships in Kenya.
She didn't get tired.
She was very motivated.
She grabbed this opportunity.
You can see the athletes that are
just... when they have this epiphany,
"Oh, wow, I belong here. I'm getting
better. I want to learn more."
They're like a sponge.
They want information.
I want those people to see me,
what I have achieved.
They bring their children in cycling
and they also get inspired from me.
That is keeping me going.
Like when I think about that,
I just go,
they need to see me
and then they come in cycling.
The goal this year is to participate
in World Championship.
The South African coming home
for you right now
at the end of a long run.
But Moolman Pasio for SD Worx
here opens up the...
Here's Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
now going clear...
Woman cyclist,
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
has walked away
with the biggest accolade.
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
for the longest time
has been the sole flag bearer
for African women's cycling.
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
continues to represent
local cycling with distinction.
Moolman pulls out again,
Moolman going all the way.
It's Ashleigh Moolman Pasio who
takes the World Champion's Jersey.
My name is Ashleigh Moolman Pasio.
I'm South African
and I'm currently riding for the AG
Insurance Soudal World Tour Team.
I used to play with my friends
in the streets, riding our bikes.
But while I was at school,
cycling was not a career path
or it's not even something
that I even imagined,
you know,
in South Africa at the time,
I was involved
in traditional school sports,
which is, like, field hockey
or athletics, tennis.
I went to university
to study chemical engineering,
and it was at university
that I met my husband Carl.
From the very first moment,
actually, Carl,
immediately noticed my potential
as a cyclist,
because all of a sudden,
my small, petite size,
but my strength, came together,
in terms of power to weight.
Step by step,
it became very clear that
cycling was a talent
and something that I should pursue.
I came over the next year
to ride in Europe,
but on no salary when I started,
which was in 2010.
I mean, salaries weren't even
possible in women's cycling.
So, the only way I could make it was,
yeah, was by riding for a local team.
Riding throughout the year.
So when off season happened in
Europe, I went back to South Africa,
to compete for the local team
who was paying me a small salary.
It's absolutely impossible
to stand a chance of a top result
if you're not racing in Europe
amongst the best cyclists
in the world.
It didn't come without its
challenges, its heartaches, tears.
In the first year
as a professional cyclist,
I broke my collarbone three times
in the space of 12 months.
It didn't come easy to her.
She had to overcome
a lot of the obstacles that
African cyclists still face today,
but she did not give up.
Ashleigh wants her career
to mean more than just herself.
She understands what she achieves can
mean something else for someone else.
So I think after 15 years
of going to world champs,
this is potentially your last smash
at a world title.
Yeah, and I mean,
you should feel confident about it.
Yeah, I feel a lot of confidence.
I've done the preparation.
I know the fitness is there.
I know the course is well suited to
me. I've ridden the course myself.
I know what it's like in Rwanda.
There's going to be the energy of
Africa, there's a lot of positives,
but I think what I do also need
to be cognizant of
is not to go back to that sort of
"big weight on your shoulders",
type of situation where I don't
really respond very well.
Like, yes, it's my last crack
at a world title,
but I've also gotta go out there
and just have fun and enjoy the race.
We've seen you do that
in Africa multiple times.
That's what brings results
at the end of the day.
Yeah.
I love Africa and I just love
the energy of the people.
I really can't wait to be there and
race in front of an African crowd.
It's gonna be so cool.
-Well, let's go there and fire.
-Yep, I'm excited.
To win a world title or an
Olympic Games is really a challenge
when you come from countries
outside of Europe.
Being a world champion was something
that I almost let go of,
and I have become
one of the best in the world.
I believe that the World
Championships in Rwanda
is a turning point
for African cycling.
However, it's only the start point
because it's going to be the event
that shows the world,
what African cycling is all about.
It's going to be interesting because
with the Championships in Rwanda,
do we need more racing in Africa
or do we need to get more Africans
to the racing in Europe?
We've asked the question
so many times and here he comes.
Is he gonna make it?
She defends the rainbow jersey
in absolute fashion.
Perfection.
Now the home stretch
and the favorite Eddy Merckx
wins by only half a wheel.
Merckx becomes world champ.
And these are Pog's worlds.
Tadej Pogacar and the rainbow jersey,
the perfect fit.
I'm David Lappartient,
the president of the UCI,
Union Cycliste Internationale.
The UCI has been created
in April 1900.
The World Championships for cycling
on the road, were born in 1921.
It's a very specific race.
You have the jersey
and the jersey is something unique.
We are the only sport with a jersey.
The rainbow jersey
is the pinnacle of the sport, really.
It's the one jersey that everybody,
recognizes and aspires
to wear those rainbow stripes.
It's a dream for a rider
to wear this jersey.
All the top riders,
they want to wear it,
and that's something that
will make the championship unique.
They all think,
there is no ear pieces,
so you need to feel the race
yourself.
It's by nation.
This is only one race in the year.
It's on a circuit. So, we have
to crown one of the top riders.
The World Championships
are the World Championships.
We've never been to Africa.
We are working
with so many nations here in Africa
to enlarge cycling, to make cycling
one of the most popular sports
within the continent.
And yes, we also need
to have this event
to showcase a little bit,
cycling in Africa to the world
and they will see
the passion here for cycling.
I'm Chris Froome, four times
winner of the Tour de France.
I was born in Kenya.
Born in east Africa.
I think we need many more races
on the African continent
like the tour of Rwanda.
It's probably the best opportunity
for African cyclists
to race against Europeans.
The key actors are Rwanda because
they have the most important race,
Tour of Rwanda, and they
host the World Championship.
My name is Nelly Mukazayire.
I'm the Minister of sports.
I'll say we started
with a humble beginning
and Tour de Rwanda
got elevated to 2.1,
which was good,
but also more challenging.
This is a special day for us.
This edition of Tour de Rwanda
is going also to be on another level
because it's going to bring
a greater significance
as we build up to the UCI 2025
Road World Championship.
I have a written speech,
but I think
I will not follow my speech
and I will just
speak with my heart
because today
it's a great day for the UCI.
After 125 years, we will celebrate
our 125 years anniversary
on the 14th of April this year.
So to celebrate our birthday
we decided to come here in Rwanda.
I remember my first meeting
with President Kagame.
At the time it was the bid
to organize the 2025
UCI Cycling World Championships,
and the President was clear.
For him, he wanted to have a legacy,
of course, to welcome the event,
because it's a cycling nation,
but clearly to have a legacy.
Africa deserves
to have the championship.
It's also going to be the platform
for Africa to launch itself
as a serious contender for big races
like the Tour de Rwanda.
Having such a tour in Rwanda
is very helpful for any organization,
I think in the world,
to really get the feel,
and the requirements
for the championship in September.
Kigali has for years shown that
they can host world class events.
Now, that's not to say
that this World Championships
won't be without its obstacles.
There will be teething issues.
There will be challenges
compared to a first world country
like Switzerland
or Australia hosting
the World Championships.
The roots of cycling
are clearly in Europe
and more specifically
in Belgium, France, Italy,
Netherlands and Spain, probably.
So there is probably a lack of
diversity, but we are working on it.
Cycling's roots in Africa started
through colonial influence.
You've got countries like Eritrea
that is probably the most passionate
cycling nation on this continent.
They were colonized by the Italians.
South Africa's cycling journey
started early on
even though it was segregated
under apartheid
and that was through British
and Dutch colonialism.
And then you had countries
like Morocco and Algeria.
They've had a long cycling legacy
through their connection with France.
Cycling there wasn't necessarily
seen as a sport.
It's not a sport, it's a transport.
If you look at a country
like South Africa, for example,
I think it's a lot more advanced
than a lot of the other countries.
It's an actual sport
that people take part in.
Whereas through
other parts of Africa,
you may have literally
one or two events a year.
It's been a incredible journey
of endearment.
I think back then there was
only 14 national federations,
and today we have 54.
Let's not fool each other.
It didn't happen last year.
Didn't happen the year before.
This, where we are today,
is because of the predecessors
and what they did before.
If you put things in context,
we are a country,
which is only 30 years old,
after the genocide against the Tutsi.
So there's a path we had to go
through to build the nation.
Rwanda's cycling story
is one of the most compelling
and inspiring stories out of Africa.
It's one that is born
out of trauma, resilience,
and the transformative power
of sports.
My name is Jamie Bissel
and I moved to Rwanda
in October of 2013
to start as the mechanic
for the national team.
The origin story is, as I understand
it, as it goes back to Tom Ritchie.
Tom Ritchie came over and
started the coffee bike program,
but he had seen everybody...
There was already a cycling culture,
they were pushing bicycles.
They were moving potatoes,
carrots.
These were old people that were
using the bicycle as a tool,
and he looked around
and said, there's potential here.
So Jonathan Boyer came in 2007
and kind of converted the project
over from being
the Rwandan coffee bike project
to Team Rwanda.
And that's when I came in.
We were at the end of that time.
They literally moved to the country
to support these young athletes
who had a hunger for cycling
and a dream.
They had what they
called the Original Five.
My name is Uwimana Rafiki
Jean de Dieu.
I'm a former cyclist,
and now I work as bike mechanic
and bike tour guide.
Hi, I'm Adrien Niyonshuti.
I'm from Rwanda, former pro cyclist.
In the beginning
it was "Project Rwanda"
and after "Project Rwanda"
become "Team Rwanda"
after "Team Rwanda"
and it become "Africa Rising".
End of 2006, I have a chance
I meet Jock Boyer,
Our coach, Jonathan Boyer,
he tested many riders,
so I was very surprised
to be in top five.
From there, just like, you know,
everything opened on my eye
and I start believing
I can become a professional.
I remember,
I always asked Jock Boyer,
"you going to leave us and go back
to USA" and Jock, he say,
"No, Adrien, I'll be here
until you guys achieve your goal".
We did a good job to put the country
to the world map.
Adrien Niyonshuti
is a remarkable human being,
and he's someone who lost six
of his brothers during the genocide,
and Adrien went on to become an
Olympian and a world tour cyclist.
The highest level of cycling.
I think Rwanda Cycling
and the World Championships,
that's where it started.
The 2025 UCI Road World Championships
coming to Kigali, Rwanda
is a direct correlation to the work
that people like Jock Boyer
and Kimberly Coats
did with Team Rwanda.
I don't think if it was for the
groundwork they did 20 years ago,
we would be where we are today.
There are over 100
African cyclists across genders,
racing at different levels
of professional cycling.
Biniam Girmay is the role model
for African cycling today.
But Girmay is gonna hold off Mathieu
Van Der Poel, and he makes history!
The history maker, the Eritrean,
the Rising Star of Africa,
a brilliant ride from Biniam Girmay.
Yes, if we were
to talk about the past
history honestly,
they weren't many
Black Africans that compete and win.
We only participated but now to have
victories, in World Tour Races,
especially in Classic for me.
It gives me great pride
because it's the first time
that Black Africans are winning
in Grand Tour and Classics.
I hope that what I have accomplished
till now will inspire Black Africans
and grow their numbers.
At this stage,
I hope to be an example,
for future riders.
Because I think the future
of African cycling is bright,
and everyone loves it
from the bottom of their heart.
I think about my success
that has come,
or what I have accomplished
at the moment.
It will have a huge impact.
I would like to be the next Biniam
because he's that type of guy
everyone is looking at now in Africa.
He is the role model for the boys.
I want to be Biniam for the girls.
He's n a perfect position
to try and win this stage.
Oliver Naesen starts to open up the
sprint for the team of Decathlon...
Girmay is there.
Right on the wheel is Mads Pederson
and it is right in the center.
Mads Pedersen, Pedersen, Girmay.
Biniam Girmay!
Biniam Girmay wins his first stage
of the Tour de France for Eritrea!
All the Eritreans and Africans,
we must be proud.
Now we are really part
of the big races
and then we success
a lot of victories.
So now it's our moment,
it's our time.
Biniam Girmay winning three stages
and the green jersey, it's amazing.
Even more with the
first Road World Championships
in Black Africa coming in Rwanda
in September.
So naturally, it's not like,
"What if, maybe, that cycling
will grow in Africa?"
We have an exceptional champion.
I think Biniam continues the legacy.
He now creates a possibility
for young Africans to dream,
to know that it is possible
to win a jersey
and be on the podium
at the Tour de France.
- Miria, it's JP.
-Yes, sir.
Oh, nice to hear from you, coach.
Hello.
Do you have a minute?
I have some good news.
Yes, I have a minute.
Miria, after the training camp
in South Africa,
the way that you were dedicated,
the way that you performed,
the way that you showed
your discipline,
and especially after the Kenyan
Championships, Africa Championships.
With your performance,
we decided to select you as part of
the Africa 2025 UCI training camp.
We will be going to Kigali and we'll
also be going to Brittany in France
to prepare for the Kigali
World Championships.
Those are the best news
I have ever received.
I don't know, right now,
I feel like I want to cry.
I don't know whether I'm feeling,
whether this feeling is real,
whether I should be sad or happy,
because I've never expected this.
-This is a dream come true.
- Miria, dreams come true.
There are so many barriers
and obstacles to African cyclists
making it at the top level.
I think one of the obvious ones is
visa, which limits your travel,
depending on the opportunities
that you have.
On my side, compared
to other cyclists in Uganda,
they might get difficulty
getting their visa
and it was fair now that I got
my visa though it wasn't in time,
but I managed to get it, like,
but other cyclists,
it takes, like, four months,
three months.
I pray that you reach well.
I think they're starting
to know what cycling is in Africa.
And two years after this, Africa
is going to be shining in cycling.
It's a very, very big step in life
and I think every cyclist likes this,
to be in France.
I'm going to learn, but once I learn,
I'll bring back to the country.
The big difference training
or preparing for competition
and even racing in Europe is that,
yeah, cycling is a culture here.
It's much safer and that just means
that as a woman you can,
you have the independence to train
or to practice your profession.
Cycling was life changing.
It really helped me
to become a more confident woman.
But then coming to Europe was where
it was the real ticket to freedom.
It's quite a big shift.
You're leaving your home country,
your continent, your family.
I was nobody, although I was
the best cyclist in South Africa
the best cyclist in Africa at the
time, I had to find my own way.
At that time, it meant not being
afraid, it meant taking risks.
For many years, I was the flag bearer
and the example to South Africa
and to the whole continent of Africa.
And now we have Kim.
And I was given a call
by the team owner
and the boss at AG Insurance said,
"Ask Ashleigh what she thinks.
If she thinks Kim
is worth the investment,
we will put her on the team".
And I said yes,
"Kim has a mind for racing".
But I do hope that...
I know, for example,
that what I've done over the years
has allowed Kim
to be where she is today
and to be able to realize her dream.
They don't even have a budget
for plane tickets.
It's a continental team that can
participate in toile de Besseges,
races like that.
But they don't have the money.
If they teams like those
have good bikes and equipment,
everything's possible.
The gap is the money.
Cycling, it's like Formula 1.
In F1, if you don't have money,
you don't do nothing.
On the bike, it's the same.
We don't understand it
because for us, life is easy,
we are so used to it.
Equipment to me is number one.
Number one, I think cycling is...
it's not perfect,
but yeah, I'll say I think it's
actually doing a half decent job.
Cycling's expensive. You need more
than shoes and a few basic things.
I mean, we all know a top end
Tour de France bike now is 15,000.
So considering the cost of entry,
I mean, that's expensive for anybody.
That's expensive for an African
or a European, American,
it doesn't matter.
My disc broke,
but there no... my derailleur.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. That's fine.
But I didn't know
that your derailleur had gone
or I would've brought you one.
We'll sort it out for you.
But yeah, I'll ask Sean
in the meantime...
-If I can borrow one.
-Yeah, exactly.
If he's got one in country
that you can borrow and...
-Because we bought extra handles.
-Yeah.
-We bought three extra handles.
-Perfect, good. All right.
I'll message Sean,
I'm sure he's sleeping,
so I'll hit him when he gets up.
Ask him if he's got anything.
'cause we'll see
if we can get you a spare.
Parts are the biggest thing.
We go through them. It's normal.
Teams in Europe struggle
with that sometimes
to get enough of what they need.
And that's what
we struggle with here,
and I think communicating
that understanding
to the people that need to hear it.
Because for 15 years
I've been hearing,
"Yes, but we bought
some new bikes."
"Did you buy parts?
We also need parts for the bikes."
In a country like Rwanda, it's
difficult to get things like Shimano,
SRAM, wheels, these things.
It's difficult.
We talked about earlier
with Jonathan,
we were talking with him,
he's broken his 105-rear derailleur.
If we're lucky, we'll get one to him
in maybe a couple of months.
If we're lucky.
And that's pretty fast.
Can you imagine
if we said that to somebody in,
Germany, France or whatever,
they'll go to the bike shop.
And worst case they buy it,
it's no problem.
-Will you race in the Tour de France?
-Yes.
And you will win too, right?
Anyway...
What are you chewing?
Miria, give me some mangoes!
Do you know how to grow
mangoes, Immaculate?
My mangoes are all sweet!
My name is Miiro Michael, the founder
and chairman Masaka Cycling Club.
Masaka Cycling Club is found
in Central Uganda, Masaka City.
And this club started a program,
cycling development program,
six years ago.
And we used to organize these black
mamba races every weekend
and they were just for fun.
But later on we developed
and we saw we need to a generation
of young cyclists coming up.
So six years ago
we started up this program
and currently we have 50 young
cyclists that are starting from zero
and the community is looking at them.
And not only in cycling,
but how it has also transformed these
young persons in the community.
Okay, guys,
I thank you for everything.
I thank you for the time
you've given to me
to explain some of the things
I learned
and share it with you.
What I want you guys to know,
you are boys and we are girls,
so we need help from you people
because you are the people
who are inspiring us.
But once you leave us behind,
we are going to leave the sport.
And maybe I'm spoiled.
My mother, they think my mother
gave me a lot of freedom,
gave me a lot of freedom whereby
she allowed me to join cycling.
They're saying your mother is a fool,
and I hate that.
Cycling can still largely be seen
as a man's sport
in a lot of communities.
Women can face harassment,
they can face shame.
They can even face restrictions
with regards to riding a bike
from families in their own homes.
This results
in a lot of girls giving up.
Similar to the men as well.
There aren't clear pathways,
but women often have less prize money
and a less clear way of
earning a living out of this sport.
As a club, we've tried our best
to close the gap of gender equality.
Let me give you an example.
A mother comes with a daughter
who is 14 years to the club,
and then the mother says,
"I want my daughter to be registered
to cycle with your club".
I say, "why?"
"Because I've seen boys racing
and I think my daughter
can be better than them."
So Miria comes at the age of 14.
Now Miria is 18.
Four years down the road, we are
seeing amazing things happening.
Maria was the first female Ugandan
to represent Uganda
in the African Continental
Championship.
And guess what?
She was on the podium.
She has been in Rwanda,
and in Burundi,
she has been in Kenya,
and every day
Miria is progressing.
So we see that if you give a girl
a chance in life, things can change.
Brands like Zwift
and other indoor training platforms
have become a great place
for particularly women
to ride in a safe environment.
It's also a great talent identifier.
Obviously, there are limitations.
You know, it doesn't replace riding
on the road and particularly
where the highest level of cycling
is still based in Europe,
it's still Eurocentric.
There's the culture shock of going
to Europe, especially the first time,
particularly if you have to stay
there for a prolonged period.
Athletes have to deal with
homesickness,
not seeing their family,
and take part in a sport
that is already brutal on its own.
What I'm looking forward to
in this training camp in Europe,
first of all, I'm very excited. You
know, it's gonna be my first time,
I'm going to ride with those people,
the pros,
other cyclists are going to France
and I'm going to get exposed.
I'm going to leave my family behind,
but what I am going to be
is racing for my goal.
Once I achieve it, they'll be happy,
of course.
Now what I'm looking forward is
to get a team, first of all,
and to absorb all the training
they are going to be giving to me,
so that I perform well
in the World Championship.
We're into
the final few hundred meters.
The lead group is strung out
as they battle for every last inch.
And just behind them, Ashleigh
Moolman Pasio is digging deeper.
It looks like it won't be her year
for the podium.
I've broken my back. And with
promising talent coming through.
I missed out
on all of my goals last year.
It's been
a really challenging period.
Yeah, last year, I had a very big
injury with breaking my back
and it's been a challenge
coming back.
Yeah, I mean, I've had the fighting
spirit and the determination,
but there's been plenty of bumps
along the road.
Liege-Bastogne-Liege was, yeah,
a very frustrating race for me
and a very disappointing race.
But at the same time, it was a
historical and very big achievement,
you know, for my teammate Kim,
and for my team.
We were ready to show up
and we had a great race plan
and I was a big part of that plan.
In a snap of the fingers,
you just see it all slipping
out of your hand.
I had to stop the race because,
yeah, I was getting sick,
there was no reason to continue.
I felt that I disappointed my team,
and then I got onto the bus
and I noticed that Kim,
that she was also not in the front
of the race and I felt so deflated.
And then just out of nowhere,
it all just changed.
Kim Le Court must time this one.
The sprint opens up,
200 meters to go.
Kim Le Court down the center.
Kim Le Court and Puck Pieterse.
It looks like it's gonna come
down to between those.
Kim Le Court pulls clear.
Kim Le Court sits up
and celebrates
for AG Insurance Soudal!
The first African
to ever win a monument.
So it was a real rollercoaster for
me, obviously with the challenges
I've been facing
in the early part of the year.
Coming back from the injury,
I really put Ardennes Classic
as my first goal.
I really had to find
the balance inside myself,
you know, of being disappointed
and frustrated and a bit angry
at myself,
but then also being really happy
for Kim and for the team.
You can run, for example, in Kenya,
in countries, in Ethiopia,
and you can go immediately
to ride a marathon.
In cycling, you can't be a champion
just by training.
It's possible in other sports.
It's impossible in road cycling
because you need to compete,
you need to learn how to put yourself
in a peloton,
how to be protected by the wind.
To do this, unfortunately,
I would say you have
to come to Europe
because this is where
you have most of the races.
This is where you will learn.
And, of course, for African riders,
they have then to travel.
And, by the way, it's more difficult.
We have caused restrictions
and so on.
David Lappartient, he had the vision
to create a team from Africa,
which we call the Africa 2025 team.
And that's how
you create opportunities.
You take them to Brittany, you expose
them to the local club racing.
And the good thing
about the system in France
is that they have
so many different levels
that once you prove yourself
in the first level,
you can go to the next level.
So that's exactly what we need.
Grassroots plays an incredible role
in developing African athletes.
I believe somewhere in Africa,
we have the next Chris Froome,
the next Biniam Girmay,
the next Ashleigh Moolman Pasio.
They are there,
waiting to be discovered.
We have a Tour de France winner
somewhere in Africa,
but on a practical level,
in order to get that,
you need grassroots initiatives.
You need to start
with 10,000 athletes
where 1000 of them
will have talent.
100 might make it to the pro ranks,
and ten might
become the best in the world.
If we look ahead ten years, there
should be two or three African riders
in the Tour de France,
if the work is done properly.
But now, there's a real
cultural effort to be made.
These are great riders,
but they lack international exposure.
Top-level sport is becoming
less and less virtuous,
and I believe Africa, for cycling,
requires humility and support.
And that's what makes it so exciting,
because it feels like we're actually
doing something meaningful.
When I got my visa,
I was kind of surprised.
How can I get this visa?
This took just two weeks.
I got the visa because they said,
if I didn't apply in March... In Feb?
No, in March, I did in March,
the next appointment
will be in August.
In my mind, everything, I'm like,
"If you don't go to France,
you don't cycle.
You don't do cycling. Just quit.
If you don't get visa, just quit.
If you don't get visa, just quit."
Even my mother kept on telling me,
"If you don't get visa, just quit."
Because when you go to France,
that's when you know
where you are in cycling.
Where am I so far
with these European girls?
My racing skills, my training?
Where am I?
Europe, obviously,
it is the best in cycling
and sports all over the world.
It's the best.
The most challenge
I got in Europe is the weather.
The roads are small, keeping right,
the food,
the language, and those are
the most challenges I got.
We go in the car!
It's not an issue, it's more
the positioning in the peloton.
Because when you are not used
to being in a peloton of 20 riders
and then a peloton of 50 to 100
riders, it's completely different.
For sprint, it's 20 seconds for
sprint, 20 seconds you sprint.
-You, when I look.
-Sprint?
-No sprint and not 20 seconds.
-What?
It's because we are just imagining,
because we don't have it
on the Garmin.
-We don't have two days of training.
-We fought a lot.
You really need to do a good sprint.
Good sprint.
Position at sprint, I speak
to you last day, you remember?
Yes. I used it today.
Some girls,
they arrived here two weeks back.
Me, I arrived two weeks after them.
So I was like, "Me, I'm late. I'm not
going to catch up with the girls."
But now, the confidence is good.
My first feeling was, of course,
a bit scary.
I didn't know what I'm going to find.
New people, new language,
new food, new sleep, new word,
new work, new weather. Everything.
Now, you speak Arabic. Rwanda, me,
I can't speak with you, guys.
I miss my language.
How are people going to be looking at
me, the Black person in Europe?
How is it going to be? Scared?
Like, I'm scared of everything.
Mostly the people.
I start to feel like it's scared.
Like it's the first time to go far
from my house,
and I would take long,
long, long time.
And this, it's give me like a fear.
But after this, I enjoy it
and I get used to it.
My goal is not to win
the World Championship.
-I don't have that in mind.
-Right.
I just have things that ring in me.
"You have to finish
the World Championship."
Once I finish the goal, done,
everything good.
And maybe I see myself
close to the dreams
because you see, like Biniam Girmay,
his way is like this. He started UCI.
No, he started local team, UCI,
now pro, now win.
Big news in the cycling world.
South African star,
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
could miss what was meant to be
her final Tour de France Femmes.
Despite a determined comeback
from injury
and wearing the green jersey
in 2023,
reports suggest AG Insurance Soudal
may leave her out of their squad.
I'm not going to be racing
the Tour de France.
And, you know, this is...
it's a real big blow to me
because it's not
just a bike race, really,
it's part of everything
I've fought for all of my career.
I'm showing all the right signs
of standing up for the team values
and the collective, and building
the team, and I'm being left out?
Rwanda is my last shot
at the world title.
I think all of the years
of preparation, hard work,
all the challenges
I've had to overcome
has created a really big fire
inside my belly.
And I think there'll have to be a lot
that stops me from achieving
the result that I'm after.
And this time, I'm going all in.
If I have to do it on my own,
I'm going to do my absolute best
to do it on my own
and to win that rainbow jersey
for South Africa and for Africa.
What I'll do is, I'll do what
I've learned in all races.
I'll add them together
and then I put in action.
I hope to do better
because now, I feel like I'm strong.
Now I'm light, I'm more aggressive.
14 laps, okay? Okay.
The first seven laps, calm. You look
at the situation in the race,
you look at other riders' attitude
and after seven laps,
little push, little push.
Not all time. Okay?
You manage. Focus for final, okay?
You manage always calm,
stay, not first position.
No work all time in front.
The UCI has played a crucial role.
They, a while ago,
identified Africa as a priority
in terms of globalizing cycling.
Those initiatives have to continue.
We are still fighting to get onto the
start line, not just to win races.
You have to start with a massive pool
at a grassroots level.
The bigger you make that pool,
the bigger the chance
of having more athletes at the top.
Go, girls! Go, go!
Well, let's just talk
about the goals. So...
World champs in Africa, in Rwanda,
I think it's a great opportunity
to use the chaos and the...
uncomfortable sort of zone
for the Europeans, right?
-Yeah.
-To use it as an opportunity.
Yeah, I think it's also,
no one knows what's coming.
From the recon we've been there.
There's so many variables
that can come into play.
-Yeah.
-Especially food.
-Yeah.
-It's a big one.
Yeah, so first have to be
really disciplined.
I do think growing up
in South Africa,
you've got a stronger tummy
than most people, hopefully.
Yeah, that's true. Yeah.
And yeah, I think, I just, I mean,
the feeling and sensations
are always different in Africa.
Like you have...
when you're in Europe, the Europeans
are closer to their families,
closer to home, and that
makes a big difference to your racing
and your performance.
But, you know, being in Africa
where you're from, where you've grown
up, it makes more of a difference.
Teamwork is also
going to be interesting.
I don't think it's very easy
because there aren't many places
where you can really organize.
There's some, like here
is quite a nice long straight.
But probably a feeding zone
is gonna be there
and you're gonna have to feed
from yourself.
Yeah, but if you think,
like, it's not that long
that they can really
get proper momentum.
So just as they start getting
kind of momentum to chase,
you're taking the next corner,
corner, corner, you know?
So if there is ever a course that's
suited to a more individual rider,
-I'd say this is the one.
-This is the one.
Uncertainty surrounds
Biniam Girmay's participation
at the Kigali World Championships.
The mountainous course does not suit
the Eritrean sprinter,
but millions across Africa hope
to see their star rider
represent the continent.
Biniam's achievements
have just been phenomenal.
It's incredibly hard to reach where
he is and overcome even more barriers
than a lot of other people in the
peloton, who he's racing against.
I don't think he's finished.
I think he's still got many years
ahead of him.
He's able to be world champion.
Probably not here
because he's not the best climber,
but Montreal 2026. Let's see.
So I wish he could be
the first African
to become UCI world champion.
These World Championships
might not suit him, but tough luck.
He's the face of African cycling.
He has to be there.
He has to show up.
He has to understand that this moment
is bigger than him.
The UCI Cycling Center formation
up front
with bib number 24,
Miria Nantume.
This stage ends in a sprint!
The winner, number 21!
Why you didn't attack on climb?
Everyone is kaput!
-I was tired, my friend.
-I told you,
Miria, go, Miria, go, Miria, go!
When I attack on the climb, I say
after I drop and after I come back.
When I told you, I told you,
Miria, go finish, everyone is tired!
We all wanted me to win!
What's your feeling on the race?
How do you feel?
A bit disappointed in myself, and I
think the team is also disappointed,
but me as a person,
I'm happy for the results
because it's the first time in
Europe in the breakaway.
I didn't win, but I was in the
breakaway, it's really amazing
and it's a big improvement on my
side, and I celebrate that.
By the World Championships,
maybe I'll be better than this.
The World Road Championships
are heading to Africa.
The Road Cycling World Championships
are underway in Kigali, Rwanda.
Rwanda took center stage
as the first African country
to hold the Cycling World
Championships.
So much, so many issues
with my stomach.
And then I did like some tests
and it was refined sugar, dairy,
and they said yeast at the time
rather than gluten.
I am in Kigali feeling myself again,
feeling strong, feeling ready,
actually feeling super fresh
because it kind of feels
like my season never really started,
you know?
Yeah, it's been a really tough year.
So when in the early part of the
year,
I was really thinking that I was
struggling with performance
because of my back fracture,
breaking my T10 vertebra
the year before.
And training went well,
preparation went well,
and I started the Giro really hopeful
I would be back to my normal self.
But again, I had a disappointing
race. I wasn't myself, you know.
So again, it was very frustrating
and confusing.
After one and a half or two hours,
I'm totally empty
and it really feels like,
as soon as I've used all of the fuel
that I ate the day before or for
breakfast, all the glycogen is gone,
the fuel that I'm taking on the bike
is not going into my muscles.
My sugar levels in my blood
were always really, really high.
And this, we continued throughout
the day and even not on the bike.
-Cheers, everyone, see you later.
-Cheers.
Eventually, we came
to the conclusion,
with the help of some blood tests
as well,
that I was suffering
from insulin resistance.
We managed to find the treatment
to help me with insulin sensitivity.
And immediately
when I started to take this,
I could see immediate response
in my blood glucose levels.
It was amazing how this changed,
how I felt and just the person I was.
I was feeling less anxious.
It was crazy.
I felt like a new person.
Now, I'm back from Europe to Africa
where the World Championship
is going to take place.
I'm really happy and amazed
for the opportunity
given to us Africans,
so that the biggest event
is organized in our own land.
Now I feel Africa will own the spot.
It's our time to shine
and let's give our level best.
We know that Europeans
are, so far, better than us,
but since this in our land, let's
embrace it. Let's do our level best.
Because when I started focusing
about working last year,
I didn't expect this quickly
to participate in World Championship.
Maybe I thought I'll be participating
maybe in two years to come
because I just started focusing.
Just from starting focusing
straight to World Championship.
It's like from ashes to the world.
The hardest part of this program
was racing in this big peloton
because me, in Uganda race,
seven girls, ten girls, it's not big,
but in Europe, 80 girls on the line.
It was hard, but now I enjoy it.
Now I see it. I see where I'm going
now because all the pros,
they passed the same journey
I passed.
When you see Biniam Girmay,
like local team, pro team,
no, local team, UCI,
now pro contracts.
Against all expectations.
Eritrean Biniam Girmay has decided
to line up at the World
Championships in Kigali.
After weeks of doubt over whether
the brutal parcours suited him,
he will be there.
Carrying not just his own ambitions,
but the hopes
of an entire continent.
I was a little bit doubting
at the beginning of the season.
It's really an honor and pleasure
to be here in Rwanda
because, yeah,
it's one of also the countries,
they like sport and they're also
super passionate about this sport.
In Liege Bastogne Liege, I cannot go.
I never go, even in Lombardia,
because it's quite hard
and I don't want to go there
just to be at the start and to drop
to be DNF. It's not nice.
Here in this kind of occasion,
it's the first time in Africa.
It's really huge for us
African riders.
And if you see this parcours,
it's way harder for African riders.
So, to be honest, might be better
if you give more opportunity
to the African riders.
Now I always like to do good results
or try to do the best of it,
but at the end of the day,
like I said, I am always happy
to wear my national team jersey
and to represent my country
and the national team asked me
to be there
to help the team and I accepted,
100 percent,
and that's why
I'm here to support my teammates.
The other guys, they already
did the press conference.
Pogi did one. Remco.
-And Kim Le Court.
-Yeah.
-She can do good tomorrow?
-I think she can do good.
Yeah, she likes more like
not too steep.
-Maybe I think--
-Ferrand-Prvot, yeah, but...
But what I see now,
Mur de Kigali is very hard.
If they accelerate here,
half of the bunch will go.
If Pogi is good at that time,
they will accelerate.
It's nice if we have one
of our teammates in the breakaway.
Kigali! Are you there?
Let me see your flags. Kigali!
Good morning. Welcome to the 2025
UCI Road World Championships
here in Kigali. We've mentioned
a few times this week,
the first time we had these
championships in Africa.
So this is it. The women's
and men's elite road races
at a championships we hope
will leave a lasting legacy.
It's special for multiple reasons,
of course,
like I've been flying the flag
for South Africa,
for Africa, this is the 16th year
in my professional career,
and for many years,
I was the only African rider
racing at the elite level
in women's cycling in Europe.
And now it's good to see
there are more riders joining me.
Riders like Kim Le Court wearing
the yellow jersey in the tour.
So the progression is slowly but
surely coming, which is really great.
I think the important thing for me
is, yes, I have hopes and aspirations
of getting a good result,
but more than anything,
I want to be proud
of the race that I rode,
and to finish the race feeling proud.
I think maybe when we arrive,
you have an electrolyte bottle
before we start.
Before we start the race.
Because it's very hot today.
-Yes, very hot.
-Yeah.
You have to keep the fuel up,
but you are ready.
You have to believe that.
You already have done everything
that you can...
to be ready.
And when you are doing this,
you remember all the sacrifices
you did.
Hard training,
being away from your family,
suffering on the bike.
France is difficult.
So on that start line, you remember
all that and you use that as fuel,
motivation to drive you.
To do the best as you can,
no matter the results.
One year preparing for this race.
You know, today, my mother is...
She is going to the clubhouse.
They called everyone in the
community. "Come see, come, come."
-Make them proud.
-I'll try.
The first thing we need
is the basic things.
We are already far behind
the European races.
We also struggle to buy a bike
because they are in Europe.
It's already 14,000, 15,000.
If you look back here, I don't know
how to spend this money.
It's way more powerful.
We don't need to have exactly
like the biggest races
or something like this.
We just need to have,
of course, better coaches,
better nutrition, that might help
a lot, I think,
if you give this opportunity
for the other African riders.
It's gonna be brutal. I mean,
more than 6,000 meters of climbing.
The heat, the humidity,
the Mur of Kigali
or the wall of Kigali
is extremely tough.
It's gonna be
an extremely tough race.
...hands together for Rwanda!
There's always a bit of a level of
stress, but at the same time,
this is going to be an iconic moment
for Rwanda and for Africa.
So when the men start, they should
also give the women start time.
So the men start,
they will start counting.
Some people doubted us, you know.
"African coach for this program,"
and, you know, "We are not good
enough. We need an European."
The most important thing
is just to stay calm, stay safe,
and just see, yeah, save energy.
I just need them not to go full gas
on the first climbs.
I feel like people will be a bit
afraid, actually, to be honest.
This is team South Africa!
And I'm already here
a couple of days.
You know, everywhere I go,
I'm also a bit surprised.
They call my name.
Eritrea! Eritrea, my friends!
In the land of a thousand hills,
there's hundreds of thousands
of people out on the road.
Everything coming together,
a selective parcours,
with the heat and the humidity.
And there he is, Biniam Girmay
representing his team,
his country, his continent.
But the big question remains,
what can he do
on this brutal course?
For Ashleigh Moolman Pasio,
this is her last World Championship.
One final shot
to etch her name in history.
Miria Nantume, the young Ugandan
rider, months of training,
thousands of kilometers.
It all comes down to this moment.
It's cycling time for Africa.
Coming through is Ashleigh
Moolman Pasio for South Africa.
...the likes of Biniam Girmay...
It's getting tough
for Miria Nantume now
as she's digging deep
fighting to hold that wheel.
And it is the approach now
into Mur de Kigali.
This is Bini and I think I'm afraid
that the climb is doing for Bini,
but this parcours wasn't for him.
And it's Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
that's bringing things
back together.
But you can see the attack here
of Amanda Spratt
has definitely done some damage
to the bunch behind.
And on to the Mur de Kigali,
15 percent at the bottom,
it's 400 meters long.
It's a cobbled classic job this,
in the heart of Africa.
What an effort.
What courage from the man
who's carried the hopes
of a continent.
This course is unforgiving. It's too
much for Miria Nantume today.
Bravo.
Oh, what heartbreak
for the South African,
29th, despite the incredible roar
from the African fans
along the road.
I was cramping so bad before
the second last climb at the...
I knew I needed to be in that break.
Well done.
Yeah, I had a good time.
Second lap, I dropped, for sure.
I couldn't go. But we always
learn from the mistakes.
Next time, better. I'm having
a tour next week in Burundi.
I want to win the tour so that
it can compensate for this one.
It's pretty hard. I feel so tired.
I think it's normal.
I already see a lot of guys drop
because of its super hard parcours.
But yeah, I'm just happy
to ride my bike
and at least
I did quite long kilometers, 175,
so that's pretty okay.
I'm the most proud
of the person I've become.
More than any results,
I've really evolved
as a person from a really insecure,
shy woman to a strong woman.
Not only physically, but
emotionally and mentally as well.
I wish I get a team in Europe
to continue my career
of being a pro cyclist.
I still have big dreams.
This is just the start.
Behind you, there is so many
young kids especially in Africa,
watching you, following you.
It's really pushed me to going
forward for the next season.
Get on a bicycle. It will open
doors. It'll give you freedom.
It changes your life forever.
This is going to impact from south
to north and from east to west.
The World Championship is
in Rwanda this year.
It's pivotal.
It could go either way.
The goal is to use the
World Championships in Africa
as a real opportunity
to go for the rainbow jersey.
I would like to be the next Biniam,
because he's that type of guy.
Everyone is looking at Africa.
The history maker, Biniam Girmay,
the rising star of Africa.
You made history, you made history.
You know for Africa,
you know it, Binnie.
The goal was not to bring,
I would say our peloton to Africa
and to be back,
the goal was clearly to have
this championship in Africa,
but for Africa.
And on to the Mur de Kigali.
It's a cobbled classic job this,
in the heart of Africa.
Stay calm, stay safe.
People will be able to frame it.
The future of African cycling
isn't coming. It's already here.
It'll put Africa on the map.
Good morning, Kigali. It's 6:00 a.m.
The sun is rising over the land
of a thousand hills,
and it is a very special day today.
The UCI is expected to formally
announce Rwanda
as the host of the 2025 Road
World Cycling Championships.
First and foremost, I'm proud
that the World Championships
will come to Kigali in Africa.
First time,
I think it's a very, very big feat.
Now, 2025 will be the year
of cycling in Africa.
The 2025 World Road
Cycling Championships
will be held in Rwanda.
All other continents
have already hosted
the Road World Championships
except Africa.
Yes, African coffee, African tea.
Put well water in the bottle.
Aren't you going to the club house?
I am going.
Are you going to mingle posho?
-No, this water is for a shower.
-Is it good for you?
-To shower with hot water?
-Yes, why not?
My name is Nantume Miria,
from Uganda.
Cyclist from Masaka Cycling Club.
I started cycling in 2020.
The reason why my mother
took me to cycling was
because by then I had many groups.
She was scared that I'll get spoiled.
She didn't like the sport, but took
me to the sport just to take time,
not to be in bad peer groups.
That's how I started cycling.
I asked her if she could really
manage doing it being a girl.
Those from her paternal side,
had refused to let her cycle,
claiming girls do not ride bicycles.
But as a mother,
when I learned it was her passion,
I allowed her to go and try.
It was so amazing that when she went,
she was even being paid.
She started bringing money home.
We use this money
to take care of the home.
All of us started loving cycling.
Even those who didn't like it.
Miria came to South Africa
and we recognized her as a talent
through Masaka Cycling Club
in the Uganda Cycling Association.
Where I have brought you is where
I usually come for my recoveries.
Maybe when I'm sad at times, I come
here, I just listen to the nature.
I just feel the vibes of the nature.
Like now, I just feel it.
Everything is good.
I don't have any stress.
I'm just looking at the plants,
at the sunset,
listening to the cow's voice.
Everything is good.
Hi, I am JP Van Zyl.
I'm a fan of African cycling
and I work for the World Cycling
Center in Switzerland
doing the development
on the African continent.
Owen and his team told me
Miria's really talented,
that she needs to deserve a place
to come to the training camp
in Paarl, in South Africa.
We did that prior to the Africa
Championships in Kenya.
She didn't get tired.
She was very motivated.
She grabbed this opportunity.
You can see the athletes that are
just... when they have this epiphany,
"Oh, wow, I belong here. I'm getting
better. I want to learn more."
They're like a sponge.
They want information.
I want those people to see me,
what I have achieved.
They bring their children in cycling
and they also get inspired from me.
That is keeping me going.
Like when I think about that,
I just go,
they need to see me
and then they come in cycling.
The goal this year is to participate
in World Championship.
The South African coming home
for you right now
at the end of a long run.
But Moolman Pasio for SD Worx
here opens up the...
Here's Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
now going clear...
Woman cyclist,
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
has walked away
with the biggest accolade.
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
for the longest time
has been the sole flag bearer
for African women's cycling.
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
continues to represent
local cycling with distinction.
Moolman pulls out again,
Moolman going all the way.
It's Ashleigh Moolman Pasio who
takes the World Champion's Jersey.
My name is Ashleigh Moolman Pasio.
I'm South African
and I'm currently riding for the AG
Insurance Soudal World Tour Team.
I used to play with my friends
in the streets, riding our bikes.
But while I was at school,
cycling was not a career path
or it's not even something
that I even imagined,
you know,
in South Africa at the time,
I was involved
in traditional school sports,
which is, like, field hockey
or athletics, tennis.
I went to university
to study chemical engineering,
and it was at university
that I met my husband Carl.
From the very first moment,
actually, Carl,
immediately noticed my potential
as a cyclist,
because all of a sudden,
my small, petite size,
but my strength, came together,
in terms of power to weight.
Step by step,
it became very clear that
cycling was a talent
and something that I should pursue.
I came over the next year
to ride in Europe,
but on no salary when I started,
which was in 2010.
I mean, salaries weren't even
possible in women's cycling.
So, the only way I could make it was,
yeah, was by riding for a local team.
Riding throughout the year.
So when off season happened in
Europe, I went back to South Africa,
to compete for the local team
who was paying me a small salary.
It's absolutely impossible
to stand a chance of a top result
if you're not racing in Europe
amongst the best cyclists
in the world.
It didn't come without its
challenges, its heartaches, tears.
In the first year
as a professional cyclist,
I broke my collarbone three times
in the space of 12 months.
It didn't come easy to her.
She had to overcome
a lot of the obstacles that
African cyclists still face today,
but she did not give up.
Ashleigh wants her career
to mean more than just herself.
She understands what she achieves can
mean something else for someone else.
So I think after 15 years
of going to world champs,
this is potentially your last smash
at a world title.
Yeah, and I mean,
you should feel confident about it.
Yeah, I feel a lot of confidence.
I've done the preparation.
I know the fitness is there.
I know the course is well suited to
me. I've ridden the course myself.
I know what it's like in Rwanda.
There's going to be the energy of
Africa, there's a lot of positives,
but I think what I do also need
to be cognizant of
is not to go back to that sort of
"big weight on your shoulders",
type of situation where I don't
really respond very well.
Like, yes, it's my last crack
at a world title,
but I've also gotta go out there
and just have fun and enjoy the race.
We've seen you do that
in Africa multiple times.
That's what brings results
at the end of the day.
Yeah.
I love Africa and I just love
the energy of the people.
I really can't wait to be there and
race in front of an African crowd.
It's gonna be so cool.
-Well, let's go there and fire.
-Yep, I'm excited.
To win a world title or an
Olympic Games is really a challenge
when you come from countries
outside of Europe.
Being a world champion was something
that I almost let go of,
and I have become
one of the best in the world.
I believe that the World
Championships in Rwanda
is a turning point
for African cycling.
However, it's only the start point
because it's going to be the event
that shows the world,
what African cycling is all about.
It's going to be interesting because
with the Championships in Rwanda,
do we need more racing in Africa
or do we need to get more Africans
to the racing in Europe?
We've asked the question
so many times and here he comes.
Is he gonna make it?
She defends the rainbow jersey
in absolute fashion.
Perfection.
Now the home stretch
and the favorite Eddy Merckx
wins by only half a wheel.
Merckx becomes world champ.
And these are Pog's worlds.
Tadej Pogacar and the rainbow jersey,
the perfect fit.
I'm David Lappartient,
the president of the UCI,
Union Cycliste Internationale.
The UCI has been created
in April 1900.
The World Championships for cycling
on the road, were born in 1921.
It's a very specific race.
You have the jersey
and the jersey is something unique.
We are the only sport with a jersey.
The rainbow jersey
is the pinnacle of the sport, really.
It's the one jersey that everybody,
recognizes and aspires
to wear those rainbow stripes.
It's a dream for a rider
to wear this jersey.
All the top riders,
they want to wear it,
and that's something that
will make the championship unique.
They all think,
there is no ear pieces,
so you need to feel the race
yourself.
It's by nation.
This is only one race in the year.
It's on a circuit. So, we have
to crown one of the top riders.
The World Championships
are the World Championships.
We've never been to Africa.
We are working
with so many nations here in Africa
to enlarge cycling, to make cycling
one of the most popular sports
within the continent.
And yes, we also need
to have this event
to showcase a little bit,
cycling in Africa to the world
and they will see
the passion here for cycling.
I'm Chris Froome, four times
winner of the Tour de France.
I was born in Kenya.
Born in east Africa.
I think we need many more races
on the African continent
like the tour of Rwanda.
It's probably the best opportunity
for African cyclists
to race against Europeans.
The key actors are Rwanda because
they have the most important race,
Tour of Rwanda, and they
host the World Championship.
My name is Nelly Mukazayire.
I'm the Minister of sports.
I'll say we started
with a humble beginning
and Tour de Rwanda
got elevated to 2.1,
which was good,
but also more challenging.
This is a special day for us.
This edition of Tour de Rwanda
is going also to be on another level
because it's going to bring
a greater significance
as we build up to the UCI 2025
Road World Championship.
I have a written speech,
but I think
I will not follow my speech
and I will just
speak with my heart
because today
it's a great day for the UCI.
After 125 years, we will celebrate
our 125 years anniversary
on the 14th of April this year.
So to celebrate our birthday
we decided to come here in Rwanda.
I remember my first meeting
with President Kagame.
At the time it was the bid
to organize the 2025
UCI Cycling World Championships,
and the President was clear.
For him, he wanted to have a legacy,
of course, to welcome the event,
because it's a cycling nation,
but clearly to have a legacy.
Africa deserves
to have the championship.
It's also going to be the platform
for Africa to launch itself
as a serious contender for big races
like the Tour de Rwanda.
Having such a tour in Rwanda
is very helpful for any organization,
I think in the world,
to really get the feel,
and the requirements
for the championship in September.
Kigali has for years shown that
they can host world class events.
Now, that's not to say
that this World Championships
won't be without its obstacles.
There will be teething issues.
There will be challenges
compared to a first world country
like Switzerland
or Australia hosting
the World Championships.
The roots of cycling
are clearly in Europe
and more specifically
in Belgium, France, Italy,
Netherlands and Spain, probably.
So there is probably a lack of
diversity, but we are working on it.
Cycling's roots in Africa started
through colonial influence.
You've got countries like Eritrea
that is probably the most passionate
cycling nation on this continent.
They were colonized by the Italians.
South Africa's cycling journey
started early on
even though it was segregated
under apartheid
and that was through British
and Dutch colonialism.
And then you had countries
like Morocco and Algeria.
They've had a long cycling legacy
through their connection with France.
Cycling there wasn't necessarily
seen as a sport.
It's not a sport, it's a transport.
If you look at a country
like South Africa, for example,
I think it's a lot more advanced
than a lot of the other countries.
It's an actual sport
that people take part in.
Whereas through
other parts of Africa,
you may have literally
one or two events a year.
It's been a incredible journey
of endearment.
I think back then there was
only 14 national federations,
and today we have 54.
Let's not fool each other.
It didn't happen last year.
Didn't happen the year before.
This, where we are today,
is because of the predecessors
and what they did before.
If you put things in context,
we are a country,
which is only 30 years old,
after the genocide against the Tutsi.
So there's a path we had to go
through to build the nation.
Rwanda's cycling story
is one of the most compelling
and inspiring stories out of Africa.
It's one that is born
out of trauma, resilience,
and the transformative power
of sports.
My name is Jamie Bissel
and I moved to Rwanda
in October of 2013
to start as the mechanic
for the national team.
The origin story is, as I understand
it, as it goes back to Tom Ritchie.
Tom Ritchie came over and
started the coffee bike program,
but he had seen everybody...
There was already a cycling culture,
they were pushing bicycles.
They were moving potatoes,
carrots.
These were old people that were
using the bicycle as a tool,
and he looked around
and said, there's potential here.
So Jonathan Boyer came in 2007
and kind of converted the project
over from being
the Rwandan coffee bike project
to Team Rwanda.
And that's when I came in.
We were at the end of that time.
They literally moved to the country
to support these young athletes
who had a hunger for cycling
and a dream.
They had what they
called the Original Five.
My name is Uwimana Rafiki
Jean de Dieu.
I'm a former cyclist,
and now I work as bike mechanic
and bike tour guide.
Hi, I'm Adrien Niyonshuti.
I'm from Rwanda, former pro cyclist.
In the beginning
it was "Project Rwanda"
and after "Project Rwanda"
become "Team Rwanda"
after "Team Rwanda"
and it become "Africa Rising".
End of 2006, I have a chance
I meet Jock Boyer,
Our coach, Jonathan Boyer,
he tested many riders,
so I was very surprised
to be in top five.
From there, just like, you know,
everything opened on my eye
and I start believing
I can become a professional.
I remember,
I always asked Jock Boyer,
"you going to leave us and go back
to USA" and Jock, he say,
"No, Adrien, I'll be here
until you guys achieve your goal".
We did a good job to put the country
to the world map.
Adrien Niyonshuti
is a remarkable human being,
and he's someone who lost six
of his brothers during the genocide,
and Adrien went on to become an
Olympian and a world tour cyclist.
The highest level of cycling.
I think Rwanda Cycling
and the World Championships,
that's where it started.
The 2025 UCI Road World Championships
coming to Kigali, Rwanda
is a direct correlation to the work
that people like Jock Boyer
and Kimberly Coats
did with Team Rwanda.
I don't think if it was for the
groundwork they did 20 years ago,
we would be where we are today.
There are over 100
African cyclists across genders,
racing at different levels
of professional cycling.
Biniam Girmay is the role model
for African cycling today.
But Girmay is gonna hold off Mathieu
Van Der Poel, and he makes history!
The history maker, the Eritrean,
the Rising Star of Africa,
a brilliant ride from Biniam Girmay.
Yes, if we were
to talk about the past
history honestly,
they weren't many
Black Africans that compete and win.
We only participated but now to have
victories, in World Tour Races,
especially in Classic for me.
It gives me great pride
because it's the first time
that Black Africans are winning
in Grand Tour and Classics.
I hope that what I have accomplished
till now will inspire Black Africans
and grow their numbers.
At this stage,
I hope to be an example,
for future riders.
Because I think the future
of African cycling is bright,
and everyone loves it
from the bottom of their heart.
I think about my success
that has come,
or what I have accomplished
at the moment.
It will have a huge impact.
I would like to be the next Biniam
because he's that type of guy
everyone is looking at now in Africa.
He is the role model for the boys.
I want to be Biniam for the girls.
He's n a perfect position
to try and win this stage.
Oliver Naesen starts to open up the
sprint for the team of Decathlon...
Girmay is there.
Right on the wheel is Mads Pederson
and it is right in the center.
Mads Pedersen, Pedersen, Girmay.
Biniam Girmay!
Biniam Girmay wins his first stage
of the Tour de France for Eritrea!
All the Eritreans and Africans,
we must be proud.
Now we are really part
of the big races
and then we success
a lot of victories.
So now it's our moment,
it's our time.
Biniam Girmay winning three stages
and the green jersey, it's amazing.
Even more with the
first Road World Championships
in Black Africa coming in Rwanda
in September.
So naturally, it's not like,
"What if, maybe, that cycling
will grow in Africa?"
We have an exceptional champion.
I think Biniam continues the legacy.
He now creates a possibility
for young Africans to dream,
to know that it is possible
to win a jersey
and be on the podium
at the Tour de France.
- Miria, it's JP.
-Yes, sir.
Oh, nice to hear from you, coach.
Hello.
Do you have a minute?
I have some good news.
Yes, I have a minute.
Miria, after the training camp
in South Africa,
the way that you were dedicated,
the way that you performed,
the way that you showed
your discipline,
and especially after the Kenyan
Championships, Africa Championships.
With your performance,
we decided to select you as part of
the Africa 2025 UCI training camp.
We will be going to Kigali and we'll
also be going to Brittany in France
to prepare for the Kigali
World Championships.
Those are the best news
I have ever received.
I don't know, right now,
I feel like I want to cry.
I don't know whether I'm feeling,
whether this feeling is real,
whether I should be sad or happy,
because I've never expected this.
-This is a dream come true.
- Miria, dreams come true.
There are so many barriers
and obstacles to African cyclists
making it at the top level.
I think one of the obvious ones is
visa, which limits your travel,
depending on the opportunities
that you have.
On my side, compared
to other cyclists in Uganda,
they might get difficulty
getting their visa
and it was fair now that I got
my visa though it wasn't in time,
but I managed to get it, like,
but other cyclists,
it takes, like, four months,
three months.
I pray that you reach well.
I think they're starting
to know what cycling is in Africa.
And two years after this, Africa
is going to be shining in cycling.
It's a very, very big step in life
and I think every cyclist likes this,
to be in France.
I'm going to learn, but once I learn,
I'll bring back to the country.
The big difference training
or preparing for competition
and even racing in Europe is that,
yeah, cycling is a culture here.
It's much safer and that just means
that as a woman you can,
you have the independence to train
or to practice your profession.
Cycling was life changing.
It really helped me
to become a more confident woman.
But then coming to Europe was where
it was the real ticket to freedom.
It's quite a big shift.
You're leaving your home country,
your continent, your family.
I was nobody, although I was
the best cyclist in South Africa
the best cyclist in Africa at the
time, I had to find my own way.
At that time, it meant not being
afraid, it meant taking risks.
For many years, I was the flag bearer
and the example to South Africa
and to the whole continent of Africa.
And now we have Kim.
And I was given a call
by the team owner
and the boss at AG Insurance said,
"Ask Ashleigh what she thinks.
If she thinks Kim
is worth the investment,
we will put her on the team".
And I said yes,
"Kim has a mind for racing".
But I do hope that...
I know, for example,
that what I've done over the years
has allowed Kim
to be where she is today
and to be able to realize her dream.
They don't even have a budget
for plane tickets.
It's a continental team that can
participate in toile de Besseges,
races like that.
But they don't have the money.
If they teams like those
have good bikes and equipment,
everything's possible.
The gap is the money.
Cycling, it's like Formula 1.
In F1, if you don't have money,
you don't do nothing.
On the bike, it's the same.
We don't understand it
because for us, life is easy,
we are so used to it.
Equipment to me is number one.
Number one, I think cycling is...
it's not perfect,
but yeah, I'll say I think it's
actually doing a half decent job.
Cycling's expensive. You need more
than shoes and a few basic things.
I mean, we all know a top end
Tour de France bike now is 15,000.
So considering the cost of entry,
I mean, that's expensive for anybody.
That's expensive for an African
or a European, American,
it doesn't matter.
My disc broke,
but there no... my derailleur.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. That's fine.
But I didn't know
that your derailleur had gone
or I would've brought you one.
We'll sort it out for you.
But yeah, I'll ask Sean
in the meantime...
-If I can borrow one.
-Yeah, exactly.
If he's got one in country
that you can borrow and...
-Because we bought extra handles.
-Yeah.
-We bought three extra handles.
-Perfect, good. All right.
I'll message Sean,
I'm sure he's sleeping,
so I'll hit him when he gets up.
Ask him if he's got anything.
'cause we'll see
if we can get you a spare.
Parts are the biggest thing.
We go through them. It's normal.
Teams in Europe struggle
with that sometimes
to get enough of what they need.
And that's what
we struggle with here,
and I think communicating
that understanding
to the people that need to hear it.
Because for 15 years
I've been hearing,
"Yes, but we bought
some new bikes."
"Did you buy parts?
We also need parts for the bikes."
In a country like Rwanda, it's
difficult to get things like Shimano,
SRAM, wheels, these things.
It's difficult.
We talked about earlier
with Jonathan,
we were talking with him,
he's broken his 105-rear derailleur.
If we're lucky, we'll get one to him
in maybe a couple of months.
If we're lucky.
And that's pretty fast.
Can you imagine
if we said that to somebody in,
Germany, France or whatever,
they'll go to the bike shop.
And worst case they buy it,
it's no problem.
-Will you race in the Tour de France?
-Yes.
And you will win too, right?
Anyway...
What are you chewing?
Miria, give me some mangoes!
Do you know how to grow
mangoes, Immaculate?
My mangoes are all sweet!
My name is Miiro Michael, the founder
and chairman Masaka Cycling Club.
Masaka Cycling Club is found
in Central Uganda, Masaka City.
And this club started a program,
cycling development program,
six years ago.
And we used to organize these black
mamba races every weekend
and they were just for fun.
But later on we developed
and we saw we need to a generation
of young cyclists coming up.
So six years ago
we started up this program
and currently we have 50 young
cyclists that are starting from zero
and the community is looking at them.
And not only in cycling,
but how it has also transformed these
young persons in the community.
Okay, guys,
I thank you for everything.
I thank you for the time
you've given to me
to explain some of the things
I learned
and share it with you.
What I want you guys to know,
you are boys and we are girls,
so we need help from you people
because you are the people
who are inspiring us.
But once you leave us behind,
we are going to leave the sport.
And maybe I'm spoiled.
My mother, they think my mother
gave me a lot of freedom,
gave me a lot of freedom whereby
she allowed me to join cycling.
They're saying your mother is a fool,
and I hate that.
Cycling can still largely be seen
as a man's sport
in a lot of communities.
Women can face harassment,
they can face shame.
They can even face restrictions
with regards to riding a bike
from families in their own homes.
This results
in a lot of girls giving up.
Similar to the men as well.
There aren't clear pathways,
but women often have less prize money
and a less clear way of
earning a living out of this sport.
As a club, we've tried our best
to close the gap of gender equality.
Let me give you an example.
A mother comes with a daughter
who is 14 years to the club,
and then the mother says,
"I want my daughter to be registered
to cycle with your club".
I say, "why?"
"Because I've seen boys racing
and I think my daughter
can be better than them."
So Miria comes at the age of 14.
Now Miria is 18.
Four years down the road, we are
seeing amazing things happening.
Maria was the first female Ugandan
to represent Uganda
in the African Continental
Championship.
And guess what?
She was on the podium.
She has been in Rwanda,
and in Burundi,
she has been in Kenya,
and every day
Miria is progressing.
So we see that if you give a girl
a chance in life, things can change.
Brands like Zwift
and other indoor training platforms
have become a great place
for particularly women
to ride in a safe environment.
It's also a great talent identifier.
Obviously, there are limitations.
You know, it doesn't replace riding
on the road and particularly
where the highest level of cycling
is still based in Europe,
it's still Eurocentric.
There's the culture shock of going
to Europe, especially the first time,
particularly if you have to stay
there for a prolonged period.
Athletes have to deal with
homesickness,
not seeing their family,
and take part in a sport
that is already brutal on its own.
What I'm looking forward to
in this training camp in Europe,
first of all, I'm very excited. You
know, it's gonna be my first time,
I'm going to ride with those people,
the pros,
other cyclists are going to France
and I'm going to get exposed.
I'm going to leave my family behind,
but what I am going to be
is racing for my goal.
Once I achieve it, they'll be happy,
of course.
Now what I'm looking forward is
to get a team, first of all,
and to absorb all the training
they are going to be giving to me,
so that I perform well
in the World Championship.
We're into
the final few hundred meters.
The lead group is strung out
as they battle for every last inch.
And just behind them, Ashleigh
Moolman Pasio is digging deeper.
It looks like it won't be her year
for the podium.
I've broken my back. And with
promising talent coming through.
I missed out
on all of my goals last year.
It's been
a really challenging period.
Yeah, last year, I had a very big
injury with breaking my back
and it's been a challenge
coming back.
Yeah, I mean, I've had the fighting
spirit and the determination,
but there's been plenty of bumps
along the road.
Liege-Bastogne-Liege was, yeah,
a very frustrating race for me
and a very disappointing race.
But at the same time, it was a
historical and very big achievement,
you know, for my teammate Kim,
and for my team.
We were ready to show up
and we had a great race plan
and I was a big part of that plan.
In a snap of the fingers,
you just see it all slipping
out of your hand.
I had to stop the race because,
yeah, I was getting sick,
there was no reason to continue.
I felt that I disappointed my team,
and then I got onto the bus
and I noticed that Kim,
that she was also not in the front
of the race and I felt so deflated.
And then just out of nowhere,
it all just changed.
Kim Le Court must time this one.
The sprint opens up,
200 meters to go.
Kim Le Court down the center.
Kim Le Court and Puck Pieterse.
It looks like it's gonna come
down to between those.
Kim Le Court pulls clear.
Kim Le Court sits up
and celebrates
for AG Insurance Soudal!
The first African
to ever win a monument.
So it was a real rollercoaster for
me, obviously with the challenges
I've been facing
in the early part of the year.
Coming back from the injury,
I really put Ardennes Classic
as my first goal.
I really had to find
the balance inside myself,
you know, of being disappointed
and frustrated and a bit angry
at myself,
but then also being really happy
for Kim and for the team.
You can run, for example, in Kenya,
in countries, in Ethiopia,
and you can go immediately
to ride a marathon.
In cycling, you can't be a champion
just by training.
It's possible in other sports.
It's impossible in road cycling
because you need to compete,
you need to learn how to put yourself
in a peloton,
how to be protected by the wind.
To do this, unfortunately,
I would say you have
to come to Europe
because this is where
you have most of the races.
This is where you will learn.
And, of course, for African riders,
they have then to travel.
And, by the way, it's more difficult.
We have caused restrictions
and so on.
David Lappartient, he had the vision
to create a team from Africa,
which we call the Africa 2025 team.
And that's how
you create opportunities.
You take them to Brittany, you expose
them to the local club racing.
And the good thing
about the system in France
is that they have
so many different levels
that once you prove yourself
in the first level,
you can go to the next level.
So that's exactly what we need.
Grassroots plays an incredible role
in developing African athletes.
I believe somewhere in Africa,
we have the next Chris Froome,
the next Biniam Girmay,
the next Ashleigh Moolman Pasio.
They are there,
waiting to be discovered.
We have a Tour de France winner
somewhere in Africa,
but on a practical level,
in order to get that,
you need grassroots initiatives.
You need to start
with 10,000 athletes
where 1000 of them
will have talent.
100 might make it to the pro ranks,
and ten might
become the best in the world.
If we look ahead ten years, there
should be two or three African riders
in the Tour de France,
if the work is done properly.
But now, there's a real
cultural effort to be made.
These are great riders,
but they lack international exposure.
Top-level sport is becoming
less and less virtuous,
and I believe Africa, for cycling,
requires humility and support.
And that's what makes it so exciting,
because it feels like we're actually
doing something meaningful.
When I got my visa,
I was kind of surprised.
How can I get this visa?
This took just two weeks.
I got the visa because they said,
if I didn't apply in March... In Feb?
No, in March, I did in March,
the next appointment
will be in August.
In my mind, everything, I'm like,
"If you don't go to France,
you don't cycle.
You don't do cycling. Just quit.
If you don't get visa, just quit.
If you don't get visa, just quit."
Even my mother kept on telling me,
"If you don't get visa, just quit."
Because when you go to France,
that's when you know
where you are in cycling.
Where am I so far
with these European girls?
My racing skills, my training?
Where am I?
Europe, obviously,
it is the best in cycling
and sports all over the world.
It's the best.
The most challenge
I got in Europe is the weather.
The roads are small, keeping right,
the food,
the language, and those are
the most challenges I got.
We go in the car!
It's not an issue, it's more
the positioning in the peloton.
Because when you are not used
to being in a peloton of 20 riders
and then a peloton of 50 to 100
riders, it's completely different.
For sprint, it's 20 seconds for
sprint, 20 seconds you sprint.
-You, when I look.
-Sprint?
-No sprint and not 20 seconds.
-What?
It's because we are just imagining,
because we don't have it
on the Garmin.
-We don't have two days of training.
-We fought a lot.
You really need to do a good sprint.
Good sprint.
Position at sprint, I speak
to you last day, you remember?
Yes. I used it today.
Some girls,
they arrived here two weeks back.
Me, I arrived two weeks after them.
So I was like, "Me, I'm late. I'm not
going to catch up with the girls."
But now, the confidence is good.
My first feeling was, of course,
a bit scary.
I didn't know what I'm going to find.
New people, new language,
new food, new sleep, new word,
new work, new weather. Everything.
Now, you speak Arabic. Rwanda, me,
I can't speak with you, guys.
I miss my language.
How are people going to be looking at
me, the Black person in Europe?
How is it going to be? Scared?
Like, I'm scared of everything.
Mostly the people.
I start to feel like it's scared.
Like it's the first time to go far
from my house,
and I would take long,
long, long time.
And this, it's give me like a fear.
But after this, I enjoy it
and I get used to it.
My goal is not to win
the World Championship.
-I don't have that in mind.
-Right.
I just have things that ring in me.
"You have to finish
the World Championship."
Once I finish the goal, done,
everything good.
And maybe I see myself
close to the dreams
because you see, like Biniam Girmay,
his way is like this. He started UCI.
No, he started local team, UCI,
now pro, now win.
Big news in the cycling world.
South African star,
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
could miss what was meant to be
her final Tour de France Femmes.
Despite a determined comeback
from injury
and wearing the green jersey
in 2023,
reports suggest AG Insurance Soudal
may leave her out of their squad.
I'm not going to be racing
the Tour de France.
And, you know, this is...
it's a real big blow to me
because it's not
just a bike race, really,
it's part of everything
I've fought for all of my career.
I'm showing all the right signs
of standing up for the team values
and the collective, and building
the team, and I'm being left out?
Rwanda is my last shot
at the world title.
I think all of the years
of preparation, hard work,
all the challenges
I've had to overcome
has created a really big fire
inside my belly.
And I think there'll have to be a lot
that stops me from achieving
the result that I'm after.
And this time, I'm going all in.
If I have to do it on my own,
I'm going to do my absolute best
to do it on my own
and to win that rainbow jersey
for South Africa and for Africa.
What I'll do is, I'll do what
I've learned in all races.
I'll add them together
and then I put in action.
I hope to do better
because now, I feel like I'm strong.
Now I'm light, I'm more aggressive.
14 laps, okay? Okay.
The first seven laps, calm. You look
at the situation in the race,
you look at other riders' attitude
and after seven laps,
little push, little push.
Not all time. Okay?
You manage. Focus for final, okay?
You manage always calm,
stay, not first position.
No work all time in front.
The UCI has played a crucial role.
They, a while ago,
identified Africa as a priority
in terms of globalizing cycling.
Those initiatives have to continue.
We are still fighting to get onto the
start line, not just to win races.
You have to start with a massive pool
at a grassroots level.
The bigger you make that pool,
the bigger the chance
of having more athletes at the top.
Go, girls! Go, go!
Well, let's just talk
about the goals. So...
World champs in Africa, in Rwanda,
I think it's a great opportunity
to use the chaos and the...
uncomfortable sort of zone
for the Europeans, right?
-Yeah.
-To use it as an opportunity.
Yeah, I think it's also,
no one knows what's coming.
From the recon we've been there.
There's so many variables
that can come into play.
-Yeah.
-Especially food.
-Yeah.
-It's a big one.
Yeah, so first have to be
really disciplined.
I do think growing up
in South Africa,
you've got a stronger tummy
than most people, hopefully.
Yeah, that's true. Yeah.
And yeah, I think, I just, I mean,
the feeling and sensations
are always different in Africa.
Like you have...
when you're in Europe, the Europeans
are closer to their families,
closer to home, and that
makes a big difference to your racing
and your performance.
But, you know, being in Africa
where you're from, where you've grown
up, it makes more of a difference.
Teamwork is also
going to be interesting.
I don't think it's very easy
because there aren't many places
where you can really organize.
There's some, like here
is quite a nice long straight.
But probably a feeding zone
is gonna be there
and you're gonna have to feed
from yourself.
Yeah, but if you think,
like, it's not that long
that they can really
get proper momentum.
So just as they start getting
kind of momentum to chase,
you're taking the next corner,
corner, corner, you know?
So if there is ever a course that's
suited to a more individual rider,
-I'd say this is the one.
-This is the one.
Uncertainty surrounds
Biniam Girmay's participation
at the Kigali World Championships.
The mountainous course does not suit
the Eritrean sprinter,
but millions across Africa hope
to see their star rider
represent the continent.
Biniam's achievements
have just been phenomenal.
It's incredibly hard to reach where
he is and overcome even more barriers
than a lot of other people in the
peloton, who he's racing against.
I don't think he's finished.
I think he's still got many years
ahead of him.
He's able to be world champion.
Probably not here
because he's not the best climber,
but Montreal 2026. Let's see.
So I wish he could be
the first African
to become UCI world champion.
These World Championships
might not suit him, but tough luck.
He's the face of African cycling.
He has to be there.
He has to show up.
He has to understand that this moment
is bigger than him.
The UCI Cycling Center formation
up front
with bib number 24,
Miria Nantume.
This stage ends in a sprint!
The winner, number 21!
Why you didn't attack on climb?
Everyone is kaput!
-I was tired, my friend.
-I told you,
Miria, go, Miria, go, Miria, go!
When I attack on the climb, I say
after I drop and after I come back.
When I told you, I told you,
Miria, go finish, everyone is tired!
We all wanted me to win!
What's your feeling on the race?
How do you feel?
A bit disappointed in myself, and I
think the team is also disappointed,
but me as a person,
I'm happy for the results
because it's the first time in
Europe in the breakaway.
I didn't win, but I was in the
breakaway, it's really amazing
and it's a big improvement on my
side, and I celebrate that.
By the World Championships,
maybe I'll be better than this.
The World Road Championships
are heading to Africa.
The Road Cycling World Championships
are underway in Kigali, Rwanda.
Rwanda took center stage
as the first African country
to hold the Cycling World
Championships.
So much, so many issues
with my stomach.
And then I did like some tests
and it was refined sugar, dairy,
and they said yeast at the time
rather than gluten.
I am in Kigali feeling myself again,
feeling strong, feeling ready,
actually feeling super fresh
because it kind of feels
like my season never really started,
you know?
Yeah, it's been a really tough year.
So when in the early part of the
year,
I was really thinking that I was
struggling with performance
because of my back fracture,
breaking my T10 vertebra
the year before.
And training went well,
preparation went well,
and I started the Giro really hopeful
I would be back to my normal self.
But again, I had a disappointing
race. I wasn't myself, you know.
So again, it was very frustrating
and confusing.
After one and a half or two hours,
I'm totally empty
and it really feels like,
as soon as I've used all of the fuel
that I ate the day before or for
breakfast, all the glycogen is gone,
the fuel that I'm taking on the bike
is not going into my muscles.
My sugar levels in my blood
were always really, really high.
And this, we continued throughout
the day and even not on the bike.
-Cheers, everyone, see you later.
-Cheers.
Eventually, we came
to the conclusion,
with the help of some blood tests
as well,
that I was suffering
from insulin resistance.
We managed to find the treatment
to help me with insulin sensitivity.
And immediately
when I started to take this,
I could see immediate response
in my blood glucose levels.
It was amazing how this changed,
how I felt and just the person I was.
I was feeling less anxious.
It was crazy.
I felt like a new person.
Now, I'm back from Europe to Africa
where the World Championship
is going to take place.
I'm really happy and amazed
for the opportunity
given to us Africans,
so that the biggest event
is organized in our own land.
Now I feel Africa will own the spot.
It's our time to shine
and let's give our level best.
We know that Europeans
are, so far, better than us,
but since this in our land, let's
embrace it. Let's do our level best.
Because when I started focusing
about working last year,
I didn't expect this quickly
to participate in World Championship.
Maybe I thought I'll be participating
maybe in two years to come
because I just started focusing.
Just from starting focusing
straight to World Championship.
It's like from ashes to the world.
The hardest part of this program
was racing in this big peloton
because me, in Uganda race,
seven girls, ten girls, it's not big,
but in Europe, 80 girls on the line.
It was hard, but now I enjoy it.
Now I see it. I see where I'm going
now because all the pros,
they passed the same journey
I passed.
When you see Biniam Girmay,
like local team, pro team,
no, local team, UCI,
now pro contracts.
Against all expectations.
Eritrean Biniam Girmay has decided
to line up at the World
Championships in Kigali.
After weeks of doubt over whether
the brutal parcours suited him,
he will be there.
Carrying not just his own ambitions,
but the hopes
of an entire continent.
I was a little bit doubting
at the beginning of the season.
It's really an honor and pleasure
to be here in Rwanda
because, yeah,
it's one of also the countries,
they like sport and they're also
super passionate about this sport.
In Liege Bastogne Liege, I cannot go.
I never go, even in Lombardia,
because it's quite hard
and I don't want to go there
just to be at the start and to drop
to be DNF. It's not nice.
Here in this kind of occasion,
it's the first time in Africa.
It's really huge for us
African riders.
And if you see this parcours,
it's way harder for African riders.
So, to be honest, might be better
if you give more opportunity
to the African riders.
Now I always like to do good results
or try to do the best of it,
but at the end of the day,
like I said, I am always happy
to wear my national team jersey
and to represent my country
and the national team asked me
to be there
to help the team and I accepted,
100 percent,
and that's why
I'm here to support my teammates.
The other guys, they already
did the press conference.
Pogi did one. Remco.
-And Kim Le Court.
-Yeah.
-She can do good tomorrow?
-I think she can do good.
Yeah, she likes more like
not too steep.
-Maybe I think--
-Ferrand-Prvot, yeah, but...
But what I see now,
Mur de Kigali is very hard.
If they accelerate here,
half of the bunch will go.
If Pogi is good at that time,
they will accelerate.
It's nice if we have one
of our teammates in the breakaway.
Kigali! Are you there?
Let me see your flags. Kigali!
Good morning. Welcome to the 2025
UCI Road World Championships
here in Kigali. We've mentioned
a few times this week,
the first time we had these
championships in Africa.
So this is it. The women's
and men's elite road races
at a championships we hope
will leave a lasting legacy.
It's special for multiple reasons,
of course,
like I've been flying the flag
for South Africa,
for Africa, this is the 16th year
in my professional career,
and for many years,
I was the only African rider
racing at the elite level
in women's cycling in Europe.
And now it's good to see
there are more riders joining me.
Riders like Kim Le Court wearing
the yellow jersey in the tour.
So the progression is slowly but
surely coming, which is really great.
I think the important thing for me
is, yes, I have hopes and aspirations
of getting a good result,
but more than anything,
I want to be proud
of the race that I rode,
and to finish the race feeling proud.
I think maybe when we arrive,
you have an electrolyte bottle
before we start.
Before we start the race.
Because it's very hot today.
-Yes, very hot.
-Yeah.
You have to keep the fuel up,
but you are ready.
You have to believe that.
You already have done everything
that you can...
to be ready.
And when you are doing this,
you remember all the sacrifices
you did.
Hard training,
being away from your family,
suffering on the bike.
France is difficult.
So on that start line, you remember
all that and you use that as fuel,
motivation to drive you.
To do the best as you can,
no matter the results.
One year preparing for this race.
You know, today, my mother is...
She is going to the clubhouse.
They called everyone in the
community. "Come see, come, come."
-Make them proud.
-I'll try.
The first thing we need
is the basic things.
We are already far behind
the European races.
We also struggle to buy a bike
because they are in Europe.
It's already 14,000, 15,000.
If you look back here, I don't know
how to spend this money.
It's way more powerful.
We don't need to have exactly
like the biggest races
or something like this.
We just need to have,
of course, better coaches,
better nutrition, that might help
a lot, I think,
if you give this opportunity
for the other African riders.
It's gonna be brutal. I mean,
more than 6,000 meters of climbing.
The heat, the humidity,
the Mur of Kigali
or the wall of Kigali
is extremely tough.
It's gonna be
an extremely tough race.
...hands together for Rwanda!
There's always a bit of a level of
stress, but at the same time,
this is going to be an iconic moment
for Rwanda and for Africa.
So when the men start, they should
also give the women start time.
So the men start,
they will start counting.
Some people doubted us, you know.
"African coach for this program,"
and, you know, "We are not good
enough. We need an European."
The most important thing
is just to stay calm, stay safe,
and just see, yeah, save energy.
I just need them not to go full gas
on the first climbs.
I feel like people will be a bit
afraid, actually, to be honest.
This is team South Africa!
And I'm already here
a couple of days.
You know, everywhere I go,
I'm also a bit surprised.
They call my name.
Eritrea! Eritrea, my friends!
In the land of a thousand hills,
there's hundreds of thousands
of people out on the road.
Everything coming together,
a selective parcours,
with the heat and the humidity.
And there he is, Biniam Girmay
representing his team,
his country, his continent.
But the big question remains,
what can he do
on this brutal course?
For Ashleigh Moolman Pasio,
this is her last World Championship.
One final shot
to etch her name in history.
Miria Nantume, the young Ugandan
rider, months of training,
thousands of kilometers.
It all comes down to this moment.
It's cycling time for Africa.
Coming through is Ashleigh
Moolman Pasio for South Africa.
...the likes of Biniam Girmay...
It's getting tough
for Miria Nantume now
as she's digging deep
fighting to hold that wheel.
And it is the approach now
into Mur de Kigali.
This is Bini and I think I'm afraid
that the climb is doing for Bini,
but this parcours wasn't for him.
And it's Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
that's bringing things
back together.
But you can see the attack here
of Amanda Spratt
has definitely done some damage
to the bunch behind.
And on to the Mur de Kigali,
15 percent at the bottom,
it's 400 meters long.
It's a cobbled classic job this,
in the heart of Africa.
What an effort.
What courage from the man
who's carried the hopes
of a continent.
This course is unforgiving. It's too
much for Miria Nantume today.
Bravo.
Oh, what heartbreak
for the South African,
29th, despite the incredible roar
from the African fans
along the road.
I was cramping so bad before
the second last climb at the...
I knew I needed to be in that break.
Well done.
Yeah, I had a good time.
Second lap, I dropped, for sure.
I couldn't go. But we always
learn from the mistakes.
Next time, better. I'm having
a tour next week in Burundi.
I want to win the tour so that
it can compensate for this one.
It's pretty hard. I feel so tired.
I think it's normal.
I already see a lot of guys drop
because of its super hard parcours.
But yeah, I'm just happy
to ride my bike
and at least
I did quite long kilometers, 175,
so that's pretty okay.
I'm the most proud
of the person I've become.
More than any results,
I've really evolved
as a person from a really insecure,
shy woman to a strong woman.
Not only physically, but
emotionally and mentally as well.
I wish I get a team in Europe
to continue my career
of being a pro cyclist.
I still have big dreams.
This is just the start.
Behind you, there is so many
young kids especially in Africa,
watching you, following you.
It's really pushed me to going
forward for the next season.
Get on a bicycle. It will open
doors. It'll give you freedom.
It changes your life forever.