Welcome to our live news service on the ground at the 2025 Tour du Rwanda, here in central Africa!
We will be sharing content in real time across our social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X/Twitter, BlueSky, LinkedIn) so please do give these a follow, as well as more in-depth articles and interviews with key riders, team management, UCI officials and many more present at this incredible race.
22 February: Saturday, the day before the race. Teams are now in earnest working on the race bikes, trying to fix issues, source spares and in some cases nutrition (we brought c. 80kg of Maurten, SIS and even a Zwift Hub in our luggage for various teams!) collect their accreditation, and finalise their plans and strategies for the race.
Our friends at the Ethiopia Cycling Federation contacted us a few weeks ago as they needed a supply of nutrition for the race and they knew our team were coming from the UK. We contacted the folk at Science In Sport (SIS) who kindly provided several tubs of their awesome Go Electrolyte carb powder, and 24 bottles for the race. We love it when the cycling industry kindly helps these teams! Thanks so much SIS, and also to the team at Madison UK for helping get these to us in time.
Excitement levels are high here in Kigali, as this edition will be the first time many riders get to truly try out the 2025 UCI World Championships course in race conditions. We expect to see some high-quality racing, and despite February normally being the rainy season, the forecast is hot sunshine, around 30C all week.
TOUR DU RWANDA 2025 PREVIEW – THE NUMBERS
There are seventy-four riders on the start list (Here on ProCyclingStats) – from twenty countries – across fifteen teams. Thirty-nine of the riders hail from Africa, 26 from Europe, 3 from Asia Oceania and 1 from the Americas.
In terms of the teams present, they are (Pro Continental): Israel – Premier Tech and Team Total Energies; (Continental level:) BIKE AID, Development Team Picnic PostNL, Java – Inovotec Pro Team, Lotto Development Team, Team Amani, May Stars and UAE Team Emirates Gen Z; there are five National Teams (Angola, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Rwanda, South Africa); and in addition the UCI’s World Cycling Centre Men’s Team.
Thirty-three of the riders present are new to the Tour du Rwanda, always vital to keep the race fresh and exciting. The race welcomes the first Greek participant this year, and Rwanda dominates the race with fourteen riders, followed by Eritrea (9), Ethiopia (8) France and Belgium (8 riders).
A good statistic is that over 20% of the riders on the start-list (15) are under 20 years old, this is truly a race at which young talent can cut their teeth and try and make it into the World Tour/Pro Continental level. Biniam Girmay is the highest ranked African rider (World #9) as an alumnus of this race (2020), and in fact thirty riders have now gone on to race for World Tour teams after participating in the Tour du Rwanda.
There are also three ‘new to the race’ teams present this year: Picnic-PostNL Development Team (Netherlands), Team Amani (a Rwanda-registered Continental team) and the Angola National Team.
The Eritreans hold the record for most stage wins (26), followed by Rwanda (20), France (12), South Africa/Colombia (10) and Morocco (9). Metkel Eyob (Eritrea) is the rider present with then most stage wins (5) and with Colombian Jhonathan Restrepo not present, maybe Metkel can add to these and equal/beat the Colombian’s record of seven stage wins?
In this vein, looking at the UCI rider rankings, Henok Mulubrhan (Eritrea / XDS Astana) is the highest UCI ranked rider at the race, and a recent Tour du Rwanda winner (2023). Other top ranked riders present are Milan Menten (Lotto), Itamar Einhorn (Israel – Premier Tech), Metkel Eyob (Eritrea / Terengganu Cycling Team), Dawit Yemane (BIKE AID), Moise Mugisha (Rwanda), Joris Delbove (Team TotalEnergies), and Kiya Rogora (Ethiopia / X-Speed United).
Interestingly, looking at the ‘Form’ data on ProCyclingStats, Henok Mulubrhan is favourite, but his 22yo team-mate Nahom Zeray (Eritrea / JCL Team UKYO) is second favourite, with 18yo Adrià Pericas (UAE Team Emirates Gen Z) coming in third. Adrià is coming in hot, after two top twenty stage finishes in the recent AlUla Tour. Another surprise name in the top five form list is Daniyal Matthews (South Africa / Team Siata) fresh from his SA National Championship Road Race win two weeks ago.
Seven nations have won the final GC of the Tour du Rwanda, with Eritrea and Rwanda tying on five wins each currently. Is 2025 the year the strong Eritrea team here makes this six?
21 February: Our team arrives into Kigali. After getting the vital and necessary eSIM and a bunch of Rwanda francs for food and ‘motos’ (the awesome motorbike taxis), we visit several team hotels to drop off the large quantities of race nutrition and spare parts we have brought over for various teams and riders to top up their supplies, or entirely for some smaller teams who cannot easily access high end products and spares.
We also visit our good friend Sean Belfast who runs the The Ride bike shop in Kigali, near the national stadium. He has been in Rwanda for nearly a decade now, and is arguably the best bike mechanic in Rwanda. He argues he is not as he has now trained up dozens of mechanics and they are better than him!
The shop partners with TheRide250 group, who buy and sell bikes, and organise high end bike tours on either road bikes or mountain bikes. Check them out on social media HERE.
