Cycling: a Tour of Rwanda 2020 rainbow

Text by: Thomas-Sean de Saint Leger Follow

The 12th Tour of Rwanda cycling starts this February 23, 2020 from Kigali, the capital of the country. Major race of the African calendar, with the Tropical Amissa Bongo, the loop of the thousand hills attracts each year professional and national teams from many countries. This year, riders of 26 different nationalities are at the start, a record.

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A Malaysian, a Panamanian, a Serb, a Chilean and even a Mongolian: from Kigali, they will be five to play the scouts, five to bring their country their first participation in the Tour of Rwanda. A total of 80 runners from 26 different nationalities are announced. Forty-two will discover the race this year. Better yet, with the last-minute registration of the Malaysian team Terengganu, aligned in place of Cameroon, fixed price for internal reasons, the five continents are represented, a first: " We didn't do it on purpose, but obviously c 'is a good thing for the race, rejoices the general coordinator of the event, Olivier Grandjean. It also corresponds to our desire to make the Tour du Rwanda an increasingly international event. And then for the country, it's an interesting spotlight. Interesting, too, in the perspective of the 2025 Worlds, which the country wishes to organize.

Biniam Ghirmay, a wheel to take

Symbol of the globalization of the peloton, one of the most anticipated men of this 12th edition is an Eritrean runner, Biniam Ghirmay Hailu, evolving in a Franco-Japanese team (Nippo-Delko) and domiciled for a few weeks in the Marseille region, in France.

Strong hope for African and world cycling, winner of two stages during the last Tropical Amissa Bongo, and second, last weekend, of the famous Grand Prix of Laigueglia, in Italy, this very young (19 years old) punching-sprinter aims " Better than last year ", include at least two bouquets. " Since my visit to the professionals and my arrival in the Delko team, at the end of last year, I have progressed a lot ," he explains in good English - he already stutters French and Japanese -, i worked on race preparation, recovery, sprints, climbs ... In fact, I improved in all areas ! Sufficient to succeed his compatriot Merhawi Kudus, winner of the 2019 edition, but absent this year? Not sure, because this year again, the Tour du Rwanda should dedicate a pure climber.

Open fight for the yellow jersey

Apart from the first two stages, favorable to punchers and / or sprinters, the rest of the program offers many difficulties: " From Tuesday, we will get to the heart of the matter, with long climbs , details the journalist of the daily L 'Team Philippe le Gars, but everything should be played during the last weekend in Kigali, with a time trial including the ascent of the Kigali wall, and a last terrible stage, without a meter of dish, Sunday 1st March . In other words, an indigestible menu for the least aerial runners of the peloton, on the contrary an ideal playground for the most comfortable at altitude, and there will be many at the start, from the Colombian Edwin Avila Vanegas (Israel Start-Up Nation ) to the Ethiopian Mulu Hailemichael (Nippo-Delko), passing by the Estonian Rein Taaramae, second last 10 seconds from the yellow jersey, and necessarily revenge. The experienced driver of the Total Direct Energie team would become the first runner from his country to win the race on Sunday, and even the first European. It would be an almost logical ending point for a 12th cosmopolitan edition like never before.

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