Africa Rising Cycling Podcast

Two week's ago we featured the father-son Uwimana cycling dynasty in Rwanda, and we now move our focus 3000km to Dire Dawa in eastern Ethiopia, home of the famous Rogora cycling family!On this edition of the Africa Rising Cycling Podcast, we talked to 22-year-old Kiya Rogora, a professional cyclist who has already raced around the world for pro teams and for Ethiopia.Kiya recently launched an exciting new men's road racing team in Ethiopia: JR Pro Cycling. The name brings to life his father's name - Jemal Rogora - an Olympian and one of Ethiopia's most famous cyclists. Dire Dawa has a long history of cycling prowess, but has recently been somewhat overshadowed by the sheer volume of riders coming from the Tigray region in the north of the country. JR Pro Cycling aims to bring back the pride in Dire Dawa, and maybe become Ethiopia's first ever men's professional UCI team. Kiya talks through his career, his heroes, the success of the team so far, the challenges, and the hunt for sponsors to join them in the journey. We hope you enjoy!

This weekend, teams from around Africa, Europe and Asia will arrive in Cotonou, on the Atlantic shore of Benin, in the heart of West Africa, for the UCI 2.2 Tour du Bénin!We sat down with race organiser, President of Bénin Cycling, famous artist and passionate cycling advocate, Romuald Hazoumé, to talk all things Tour du Bénin. He is one of Africa's leading cycling voices at the national Federation level. He calls out corruption, bad practice and laziness, and promotes equality, women's cycling and how Africa can help itself to develop a better cycling presence.Romuald talks about the work he has done with Africa Rising Cycling, the development of local coaches and commissaires, the support of Wahoo and Zwift, having David Lappartient come to present the yellow jersey on the first stage this year, and very importantly, his passion for ecology with a special prize each day for the team who are the most responsible for their ecological impact at the race. We can also no exclusively reveal that two major figures in world cycling will be joining us at the Tour du Bénin: UCI President David Lappartient who will present the yellow jersey at the end of the first stage; and Ned Boulting, one of cycling's most famous journalists, and founder of Never Strays Far - the world's #1 cycling podcast. Ned will be reporting on all things Tour du Bénin and joined us on this podcast to explain his plans. We hope you enjoy!

On 29 March 2026, 17-year-old Muhawenimana Rafiki Jonathan won the Rwandan Junior MTB XCO National Championships. This was a great win for this rising young Rwandan star.However, this journey began twenty years ago, three years before he was born, when his father, the famous Rafiki 'Kiki' Uwimana* joined Adrien Niyonshuti, coach Jonathan 'Jock' Boyer and the original members of the famous Team Rwanda.Fast forward 20 years, Rafiki's son Jonathan wins the National Champion jersey, is coached by Benin's Salami Avocetien (a protégée of Niyonshuti), supported by Africa Rising Cycling, has a grant from his Virunga Valley Academy school, a bike loaned by Estonian World Tour rider Rein Taaramäe, and was watched proudly by his father. African cycling development truly 'takes a village' and we than all our donors who made this, and many of our ongoing projects possible. Thank you! To donate, click here!*If you happen to be visiting Rwanda, Rafiki runs one of the country's best cycle touring companies - you can find out more on his Instagram page.

As a soft spoken, 58kg, diminutive South African, Louis Meintjes has not spent a huge amount of time in the media's eye, preferring his riding and results do the talking. However he is a rider to whom all aspiring World Tour riders from Africa - and around the world - should pay attention. He has ridden in 20 Grand Tours, including 7 editions of the Tour de France, which is more than any other African rider. His GC 7th in the 2022 edition being a career highlight, among other great results that year.Now at home in Andorra learning how to parent two new-borns, Louis spoke candidly to us about his journey in the sport; the struggles in his early years trying to make it in Belgium; being motivated by the successes of Robbie Hunter and the late Burry Stander; how he maintained his motivation and belief; the pain of cobbles; riding on the Intermarché - Wanty team and seeing the rise of Biniam Girmay; and his insights for young riders on how to try and make it in cycling.Thanks to Louis for his truly open and honest discussion through becoming and maintaining a professional cycling career!

In this episode, we had an in-depth chat with Jean-Pierre van Zyl, the Director of the UCI's World Cycling Centre programme in Africa. He is based at the excellent WCC facility in Paarl, South Africa.JP often avoids the limelight, but has quietly been working with Africa's leading athletes for over two decades. From the big guns like Biniam Girmay and Kim Le Court Pienaar, to the new crop of rising stars like Tsige Kahsay Kiros (CANYON // SRAM zondacrypto Generation) and Nahom Efriem (Team BIKE AID) he has worked with almost every major African cyclist. We wanted to get behind the scenes to see what makes this man tick! It was a wonderful bonus to then be joined by two of the next generation of young athletes who are at the WCC this month. Hear from Fakudze Nozipho Madiswa - known as Manndi - from Eswatini, and Gift Puteho from Zambia on what the World Cycling Centre means to them and their development.

The CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation women's professional team has been supporting African female rising talent for several years. In 2026, they have signed two of Africa's most exciting young prospects: Ethiopia's Tsige Kahsay Kiros, and Eritrea's Monalisa Araya. Ahead of this duo from Easy Africa making their debut together on 21 March, we caught up with Beth Durea, a co-owner of the team, to talk about these exciting young athletes, and the structure being built around them to help them succeed.You can follow CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation on their social media channels on X/Twitter, Instagram and others, and check out their ProCyclingStats page for lots more information as well. Enjoy!

Whilst we were on a trip to Namibia to discuss the creation of a new Virtual Performance Center there for youth development, we took some time to drop in one of Africa's pioneers in professional cycling: Dan "From Nam" Craven.Since retiring from professional cycling around the world, Dan established Onguza Bicycles, a unique handmade, custom steel bicycle manufacturing company in the heart of Africa. In this episode of the Africa Rising Cycling Podcast, Dan talks through his history, his inspiration and how the bicycles are made. We hope you enjoy this very special show.Check out the Onguza Bicycle website for more information, and if you want a steel framed one-of-a-kind bicycle, contact Dan to discuss. It will be a decision you won't regret.

In 2025, Kim Le Court Pienaar arrived in world cycling!In one incredible season she became Africa's most successful professional cyclist, winning one of the celebrated 'Monuments' and holding the 'maillot jaune' of the Tour de France longer than any other African rider in history, at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.Kim rides for the AG Insurance - Soudal Team and is passionately focused on her team-mates, and on helping make AG the best women's cycling team in the world. In a recent interview, she mentioned giving everything for Sarah Gigante later in the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift as her personal highlight of the year, even though by doing so she lost the yellow jersey herself. Kim talks openly to us about her struggle to get to this point, almost giving up ten years ago, her highlights, the role of sports psychology and the impact of the menstrual cycle on female athletes. She is pragmatic, honest and passionate and it is a real pleasure to interview her. We hope you enjoy listening!

For this episode of the Africa Rising Cycling Podcast, we wanted to hear the thoughts of some of the most knowledgeable people in the cycling world - the race commentators!We are proud to be joined by three of the finest, and folk with whom we have worked on many Africa related projects: Phil Liggett MBE, Hannah Walker, and Anthony McCrossan.Phil, Hannah and Anthony talk about witnessing the heroics and history-making moments of Biniam Girmay and Kim Le Court Pienaar, the dominance of Eritrea in African cycling, the rise of Ethiopia's Tsige Kahsay Kiros and African women's cycling, and their personal journeys into becoming commentators, their top African cycling moment (so far!) as well as many other insights. We hope you enjoy!Please do leave a review or comment, and share this podcast on your social media channels!

Many folk will not know the name Jamie Bissell. He avoids social media and the spotlight, however he is one of the most vital cogs in the success of African cycling for nearly 15 years!Hailing from California, Jamie is an elite UCI mechanic and we talk through his journey (so far!) in African cycling, which started when his mother shared the now legendaryPhilip Gourevitch’s 2011 New Yorker article, "Climbers" which told the story of Africa Rising's first project in Africa: Team Rwanda.Jamie's fascinating journey including stories from Eritrea, Algeria, Rwanda, Benin, Togo, Congo, Kenya as well as with Team USA and Team Canada.He has worked with some of the continent's top mechanics such as Kenya's Nixon Sewe, Ethiopia's Adhana ("GG") Gebregiorgis in Ethiopia and Rafiki Uwimana in Rwanda. Jamie names Park Tools' Calvin Jones (who just announced his retirement) and the legendary Craig Calfee as his heroes and inspiration.We hope you enjoy this broad and truly fascinating insight into cycling mechanic issues and developments across Africa!

With the 2026 Tour du Rwanda starting on Sunday, Jeremy and Kim take a deep dive into the key facts, riders and data points for the 18th edition of the race! (Very much fuelled by ProCyclingStats data!) We look at the dominance of Eritrea in this race since its elevation to the UCI 2.1 level, with race winners like Henok Mulubrhan and Merhawi Kudus there to make it count. Alongside them, young talent like Awet Aman on Team Istanbul and Yoel Habteab on Team BIKE AID all looking for a good result.Kim shares some history of the race as well as a fascinating story of former UCI President Pat McQuaid getting involved; the brilliant efforts of Team BIKE AID and their #rideforafrica jersey initiative; some young guns on Team Amani who will be hoping to show their chops; Africa's newest pro team: Tshenolo Pro Cycling; and finally our picks for the win!The race will be broadcast live on YouTube so make sure you tune in!

In our latest episode, we are joined by two very important actors in the world of cycling, and with whom we at Africa Rising Cycling have worked for many years: Jacques Landry and Jean-Pierre van Zyl (JP as he is known) from the UCI’s World Cycling Center (WCC). Jacques is based in Aigle in Switzerland and JP in Paarl in South Africa. Jacques leads the work of the WCC globally, with JP on point for all things Africa. We talked to them about the work of the WCC; the story of how the UCI Cycling World Championships finally made it to Africa; some of the incredible athletes they have worked with like Adrien Niyonshuti, Biniam Girmay, Kim Le Court, and the next generation like Tsige Kahsay Kiros; what the WCC is up to next; and what more the 54 African cycling federations can be doing to help young athletes. It is a packed episode, we hope you enjoy!

In our latest episode, we talked to Alex Carera, one of the key athlete managers in the world of cycling, known as the 'super agent' to many!He founded the A&J All Sports agency in 1997 which looks after star riders like Tadej Pogacar, Biniam Girmay and Henok Mulubrhan. More recently, we worked with Alex to help Tsige Kahsay Kiros (Ethiopia) secure a three year deal with the CANYON // SRAM zondacrypto Generation team.Alex talks through his career; his work with Biniam and Henok; what it takes to be a successful agent; and his tips for young African athletes on how to make it in the world of cycling!

The Re-Cycle Charity provide young people across Africa with access to a quality used bicycle.​They refurbish quality used bicycles in the UK and ship them regularly to seven projects across Africa, providing access to income, education, wellbeing, and creating long lasting improvement to livelihoods in Africa.We spoke with Charlotte Ward, Re-Cycle's Executive Director, about their mission, their history and their impact. It is a truly incredible project, supported by big brands such as Halfords -  the UK's leading provider of cycling, motoring services, vehicle servicing and repair services.We here at Africa Rising Cycling recently worked closely with Re-Cycle to distribute a large volume of unused cycling clothing, shoes and helmets donated by Rapha UK. Pictured is one of the recipients of this fantastic equipment.To find out more about Re-Cycle, please do visit their website and make a donation to help their work!

Welcome to the latest episode of the Africa Rising Cycling podcast! Join us as we speak to Stefan de Bod and Byron Munton, two South African pro cyclists who have joined the newly launched Modern Adventure Pro Cycling team. The Modern Adventure Pro Cycling team was co-founded by George and Rich Hincapie, and is aiming to hit the pro cycling scene hard in 2026, with a strong squad of US, South African and other nations.Stefan (29) has been racing on pro teams since his debut in 2016 on the Dimension Data for Qhubeka devo team, and has raced at the World Tour level since 2019.Byron (27) has stepped up to the Pro Conti level for the first time in 2026, so is looking forward to this new challenge.Byron also races for a different reason. In January 2024 his sister Jessie was left with severe brain damage after a collision with a drunk driver. Byron dedicated all his podiums to her, and raises funds to help her treatment. You can find out more on the dedicated Instagram account for Jessie's Recovery. There, if you are able to, you can make a donation to help Jessie's recovery. For South Africa, click HERE, for anywhere else, click HERE.

Tshenolo Pro Cycling is a new UCI Continental Team from Africa for the 2026 season. Established only a year ago as a club team in South Africa, and after huge success at the UCI 2.2 Tour of Benin on a wildcard entry, the team - based out of Pretoria -decided to register with the UCI and begin to build something.'Tshenolo' means 'revelation' in Setswana, and as the first UCI team out of South Africa in a good while, they hope to be a revelation in world cycling! With a good calendar in place for the first half of the year, the South African nations in early Feb, and Tour du Rwanda at the end of February, we hope to see big things from this exciting team. Rumours of a Women's Continental Team registration for 2027 are also hot off the press.On this podcast, we talk to Thabiso Rengane (Team Manager) and Reinardt Janse van Rensburg (Road Captain) about the journey so far, and their dreams for the team. We hope you enjoy this podcast! Please also check out this article we wrote about them for CyclingNews, and give Tshenolo a follow on their Instagram as well for all their latest news and developments.

African cycling history was made today. The roster for the first professional women’s cycling team with FIVE riders from across all four corners of Africa was announced today on ProCyclingStats! The five women on the UCI Continental level World Cycling Centre Team are from Algeria, Benin*, Ethiopia, Mauritius and Rwanda (* Georgette is Benin’s first ever pro cyclist!)To react to the news and discuss this, we have two guesttonight who know all these women very well. Firstly, Shannon Porthault, the Co-founder of the Rwanda Bookmobilecharity and very active supporter of the Ndabaga Women’s Cycling Team in Rwanda. You can find out more about the Ndabaga women's team HEREShe is joined by Kimberly Coats, the CEO of Africa Rising Cycling, and a regular commentator on African women's cycling. Africa Rising Cycling has a dedicated news-wire for all things African women's cycling, which you can see HEREYou can see more details on the whole WCC Team squad on the ProCyclingStats website: LINK

In this episode, we talk to Ross Burrage, the co-founder of the Masaka Cycling Club Foundation (MCC) in Uganda.MCC focuses on helping young Ugandan men and women become highly skilled young cyclists, with the dream of them getting their shot at going professional. Already one graduate of MCC has had a pro contract with an international team, with more to come!Ross co-founded MCC with Miiro Michael, who is based in Uganda and oversees all operations there domestically. MCC runs a blend of Zwift-based and IRL training and coaching, as Ross explains, with a dedicated team of volunteers. They are very active on social media so do give them a follow.MCC is 100% funded by donations from cycling fans around the world. They are hoping to get 500 fans to regularly donate to fund their efforts, so please do hit this link and join the several hundred of like-minded individuals supporting Masaka! Link below:Donate to the Masaka Cycling Club — Masaka Cycling Club

In this episode of the Africa Rising Cycling podcast, we share a recent interview with did with the BBC World Service's NewsDay programme about some exciting African rider transfers for 2026, as well as a preview of the UCI Africa Tour racing calendar.Check out our 2026 UCI race and results tracker on our website here: https://teamafricarising.org/2026-africa-uci-calendar/