Africa-Press – Rwanda. Rwanda had no presence among the world’s top cycling nations in the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
The journey began in 2008 when the country hosted its first Tour du Rwanda, then a regional race that brought together neighboring countries such as Burundi, Tanzania, and Uganda.
In April 2018, then Rwanda cycling governing body (Ferwacy) president Aimable Bayingana shared his vision of bringing the UCI Road World Championship to Rwanda, a nation in the heart of East Africa, and three years later, the Union Cycliste International (UCI) announced Rwanda as the host nation for the 2025 edition of the race.
Times Sport presents the timeline of how Rwanda landed the rights to host the global cycling event, becoming the first African country to do so outbidding Morocco, which was also in the running for the rights.
April 2018: It all started by then Ferwacy president Aimable Bayingana
Rwanda was a dominant force in the annual Tour du Rwanda between 2008 and 2018 until the race was upgraded from 2.2 to 2.1 race in 2019, making it the second-biggest road race on the continent after Gabon’s La Tropicale Amissa Bongo.
That gave then Ferwacy president Aimable Bayingana an impression that Rwanda deserves more than that and, after he was elected to lead the federation for the third term, he declared his intention of bidding for the UCI Road World Championship.
“One of my main targets in the 2018–2021 term is to bid for the World Championships.
We already have support from the UCI and the Confederation of African Cycling (CAC), and we hope when we finally bid, we will get it and bring the cycling world to Rwanda,” Bayingana told Times Sport after his re-election.
“We are not ready to host the event this year (2018) or the next one but we will definitely soon be. We are considering to bid for the 2025 World Championships.”
That served as the turning point of Rwanda’s journey to bring the UCI World Championships.
November 2018: UCI boss Lappartient backs Rwanda’s bid
After Bayingana expressed Rwanda’s intention of hosting the world championships in Kigali, the bid received a vote of confidence from UCI president David Lappartient who was convinced that Africa’s time to host the cycling event would come sooner or later.
September 2019: Rwanda submits bid
Eight months after hosting Tour du Rwanda 2.1 for the first time, Bayingana, accompanied then Ministry of Sports Permanent Secretary John Ntigengwa, made his declaration official and formally submitted Rwanda’s bid to host UCI Road World Championships on September 11.
The bid was submitted after meeting UCI President David Lappartient and UCI headquarters in Switzerland.
September 2021: Rwanda lands rights to host UCI Road World Championships
Although Bayingana later stepped down, his successor Abdallah Murenzi, who was then FERWACY’s general secretary, carried on the vision of bringing the cycling championship to Rwanda.
The country was facing stiff competition from Morocco which was also in contention of becoming the first African nation to stage it since its inception in 1921.
But their chance was too little too late as Rwanda win bid to host the race, achieving the landmark milestone during the UCI congress held on the sidelines of the UCI Road World Championships in Louvain, Belgium.
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