"It's safe, it's a safe country" - President of Rwandan cycling federation expects smooth World Championships
Cycling
2025 will be a big year for the African cycling with first-ever road cycling World Championships to be held on the continent this September. A brutal course with over 5.000 meters of climbing across 267.5 kilometers is sure to attract the brightest stars of cycling to compete for the rainbow stripes in Kigali.
"It's the biggest event in cycling world. So, for me as the President of the Federation, and for the Federation, the country, the continent, it's a pleasure," President of Rwandan cycling federation Samson Ndayishimiye told Cyclingnews. "We appreciate the good relationship we have with the UCI, and the rest of the world for giving us this opportunity and trusting us to deliver," he added.
UCI is hopeful of the event creating a lasting legacy in not just Rwanda, but whole Central Africa with a follow-up project of setting up a World Cycling Centre in Kigali. "In February, we opened the UCI satellite, the second one in the continent of Africa," Ndayishimiye said. "It's a good opportunity not only for the riders, but also for everybody else involved, commissaires, coaches, mechanics. All of that is part of the legacy we are looking at."
The first-ever African cycling World Championships are not welcomed with the same equivalent everywhere, with several national federations fearing the costs linked to a long trip. Denmark, Netherlands and Ireland already made it clear that they'd fly to Rwanda with limited selections.
"To be honest, I think realistically our sport is an expensive sport wherever we go," Ndayishimiye counters. "There was a World Championship in Australia, that's as far as I think they've gone. Now it's just around the corner, most of the countries in Europe, they have a chance to just jump on a plane, on a non-stop plane."
"So with the negativity, I think it's the unknown. It's the first time on the continent. We guarantee everyone that we are fair on the prices. Secondly, travel-wise, it should be easy for everyone. I can confirm that many countries have already booked their hotels – confirmed. Even Belgium has just confirmed that they're coming down with the whole team… That should show that everyone has done their homework and they're happy with where we are in the organisation."
At the start of the year, a civil war outsparked in neighbour-country the Democratic Republic of Congo. But the Tour du Rwanda in February proved that there are no security problems in Rwanda. "First of all, I'm in sport. So everything that is going on is nothing to do with me. One thing for sure though, the UCI has confirmed that the World Championships is taking place in Rwanda. It's safe, it's a safe country," Ndayishimiye said.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Are you MrMauMau 2.0? Nothing you are saying is really relevant. Vaguely connected, but irrelevant. The conversation is whether Schreiber impeded Brand or not.
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment