Joël Kyaviro did something near impossible last week at the Tour of Cameroon. He raced into the cycling history books on Stage 9. It all started with his brother twelve years ago.
Meet Jimmy Muhindo
In 2014, an 18-year-old Congolese man crossed the border at Goma, his hometown, and appeared at the newly opened Africa Rising Cycling Center in Musanze, Rwanda. His name was Jimmy Muhindo Kyaviro. He was from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The DRC has been mired in conflict, violence, and danger for as long as I could remember. I went to Goma a few times, riding on the back of sketchy motos. They were the only real transportation over volcanic rock left by the 2002 Nyiragongo eruption, which killed 250 people.
DRC is not an easy place, nor is Goma. Dreams are fleeting. Attaining them is insurmountable. Jimmy believed he could be a great cyclist and had potential, but being Congolese, with a non-functioning federation, no money, and no roads to train on, his possibilities and talent were forever stifled.
But he never gave up. He raced when he could. The Federation would sometimes cobble together a National team for a Continental Championships or a random race on the continent. He had solid years in 2017 and 2019 but then COVID-19 added another dimension of obstacles. Although he raced in 2021, age and life challenges caught up with him. His last race was in 2024 at the age of 28.
The breakthrough
Last week, Jimmy’s dreams came true. He stayed in the sport and, over the years, built a small development team in Goma. Jimmy has put more kids on bikes than anyone in the DRC. He’s passionate about raising the next generation, including his younger brother, Joël Kyaviro, 23. Joël became the first rider from DRC to win a stage in a UCI-sanctioned race, the Tour of Cameroon on June 13th.
Joël’s journey has been equally unforgiving. In 2023, after winning the DRC National Championship Road Race, he competed in local races in Rwanda and began racing gravel events, catching the eye of Team Amani. In 2025, he signed with the Black Mamba Development Squad and raced a mix of National Road events and local (Kenyan) gravel events, never fully tapping into his potential.
Training in a war zone
The challenges were compounded by the ongoing conflict in the DRC. This conflict, which escalated in late 2025, led to lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders for all Congolese riders in Jimmy Muhindo’s care at the Goma Cycling Club. Fortunately, due to the generosity of sponsors like Zwift and private donors, the Goma Cycling Club continued training virtually. GCC became a lead-out performer in the ARC Virtual Performance Center Network.
The VPC with the Zwift Hubs and Wahoo Heart Rate Monitors became a lifeline during a dangerous time in Goma. The personal cost to Jimmy and his family, staggering.
The 2026 season
For the 2026 season, Joël briefly signed with Team Amani Continental. Joël reached out to us in early 2026 to talk to Andrew Jackson, the owner of the Something Dfrnt Club team (hopefully a Continental team in 2027). He said Andrew had a bike for him and that he could possibly race for them. He asked whether we could help arrange for a bike to be sent to Goma—a monumental but always doable challenge—via a contact of ours who was going to the Tour of Rwanda in February. After several conversations between Africa Rising Cycling and Andrew Jackson about the bike and getting Joel a visa for Europe, Joel showed up on May 2nd at the TRAKA Gravel Race start line, his first race of the season with a new team, thanks to the efforts of Something Dfrnt and Andrew.
And then….a month later, the HISTORY making moment!
Joël, racing for the DRC National Team on a Something Dfrnt Colnago, won Stage 9 of the Tour of Cameroon on June 13th. He notched the first victory for a rider from DRC in a UCI-sanctioned 2.2 event. Joël did it with a 10” gap over his closest competitor.
In that moment, all the uncertainty about his future, all the strife in the country, and the financial challenges at the Goma Cycling Club vanished. All the hopes of the next generation of Congolese cyclists were realized. DRC cycling has a hero!
When Joël landed in Kinshasha, he was welcomed by sporting enthusiasts and fans. They saw him bring home a historic victory. In a country rocked by military conflict and the fear of an Ebola epidemic, this win gave hope.
Our village
At Africa Rising Cycling, we always say it takes a village. We all celebrated Joel’s win because so many people along the way offered help, guidance, and support. I think it’s best summed up in the WhatsApp message from Charles Guy Makongo to our VPC group chat (shared with his permission). Thank you, Charles, Jimmy, Something Dfrnt, and everyone who helped bring this victory to DRC.
