After a Vuelta a Espana which made headlines more for disruptive protests than any sporting drama, most within cycling would have opted for a low-key World Championships in a venue devoid of political significance. But politics are once again hard to ignore with the sport’s most prestigious event held in Africa for the first time in its 104-year history.
The decision to reward Rwanda with hosting rights will shine a spotlight on the growing depth of cycling on the continent and, it is hoped, provide inspiration to younger generations looking to follow in the footsteps of groundbreaking African riders including Daniel Teklehaimanot and Biniam Girmay.
But the build-up to the event has been overshadowed by sportswashing concerns around repression and human rights abuses.
Authoritarian regimes and cycling in the 21st century seem to go hand in hand, with Amnesty International warning of “enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, excessive use of force, unfair trials and restrictions on the right to freedom of expression” under Paul Kagame, who has ruled the country officially since 2000 and as de facto leader since the end of the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
Those concerns have been brushed aside by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), cycling’s governing body, whose president David Lappartient vowed to bring the World Championships to Africa when he was elected in 2017. Other worries over Rwanda’s involvement in the civil war in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo have also been swept under the carpet. Rwanda denies backing the rebel group M23 in the conflict, although Human Rights Watch say it is “not up for debate”.
Human rights organisations allege that war crimes including torture and forced deportations have been carried out during the conflict, with the DRC government saying around 7,000 people have been killed since January.
The UCI reacted to the conflict with a statement in January saying it was “closely monitoring developments” in the region but that “Rwanda remains entirely safe for tourism and business,” adding that it “wishes to emphasise that sport, and cycling in particular, are powerful ambassadors for peace, friendship, and solidarity”. There were more words to that effect in its recent statement against the “exploitation” of the sport for political gain, issued after the demonstrations at the Vuelta, but it feels rather hollow as the riders take to the streets of Kigali.
The sport’s relationship to political affairs is not the only issue under the spotlight in Rwanda. Several riders from multiple teams have expressed concerns over safety following the protests aimed at the Israel Premier-Tech team at the Vuelta.
Israel Premier-Tech have invested heavily in African cycling, most obviously in the ‘Field of Dreams’ cycling centre in Bugasera, a project designed “to help nurture the next generation of Rwandan cyclists”. Their riders may expect a warmer reception in Kigali than they did in the Basque Country, but the issues that have increasingly taken centre stage in cycling are unlikely to go away.
One of those is rider safety. This year’s World Championships are the first since the death of 18-year-old Muriel Furrer sent shockwaves through the sport in Zurich last year. The young Swiss rider died as a result of injuries sustained in a crash in the junior road race, and lay unnoticed at the side of the road for some time after crashing, sparking outcry and leading to renewed calls for more to be done to keep riders safe.
One year on the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) has confirmed that riders competing in every race in Kigali will have a GPS tracking device attached under their saddle. The scheme is a welcome one as the sport grapples with – or more accurately dithers over – how it responds to the ever-present danger of road racing, after multiple rider deaths in the past few years.
Zoe Backstedt, a member of the British team in Rwanda and newly-crowned under-23 time trial champion, said: “It’s a really tragic loss and it’s a shame that so many things like this have happened in cycling in the last couple of years. I believe the UCI is doing everything they can to make our sport as safe as possible and you have to believe they’re doing what they can for us riders.
“I would say it’s got a bit better [over the past year]. It’s a hard one, it’s not the direct thing you look at when you’re in the middle of a bike race, you only really look at it when something has gone wrong. That has happened a lot less, I would say, over the last year.”
Backstedt’s teammate Cat Ferguson said safety is “of course” on her mind when she races. She gave a refreshingly honest assessment of the state of the sport, saying: “This year I’ve seen the imperfections and the perfections of the UCI and what they’re doing for safety in cycling.”
The recent Simac Ladies Tour, which she rode in, featured “probably the worst roads in terms of danger. You’re with 150 girls and everyone wants to be at the front. Safety was on my mind more than my legs hurt, or anything, in that race.”
The 19-year-old is a member of the Cyclistes Professionnels Associés (CPA), a non-profit which safeguards riders’ interests and focuses on safety. Ferguson noted the work of the CPA – which involves monthly calls with riders and “constant feedback” to discuss issues – has “really given me confidence that there is something going on and people who are really fighting our corner as cyclists, instead of just the TV companies who maybe just want an exciting race and don’t care as much about safety.”
Turning attention to purely sporting matters, Ferguson and Backstedt are among the young talent benefiting from British Cycling’s selection policy for this championships. The national body has selected a large contingent of women’s under-23 riders for the Road World Championships in Rwanda, alongside a large men’s elite squad led by Tom Pidcock and Oscar Onley, with the focus split between the ‘now’ of men’s cycling and the future of women’s racing.
No British women will be riding the elite road race for the first time in over 30 years, with Anna Henderson – Paris Olympic silver medallist in the time trial – finishing eighth on Sunday as the lone elite British rider selected to race against the clock in Rwanda. There are no Brits in the elite men’s time trial, although former world bronze medallist Josh Tarling would have been be a strong contender were he fit. The 21-year-old has raced sparingly since crashing out of the Giro in May.
But the decision to focus on the brand new under-23 category has paid off so far, with Backstedt making history as the first ever winner of the time trial.
Ferguson is well-placed to complete a clean sweep for GB women by upgrading her junior road race title from last year (the teenager followed in Backstedt’s footsteps by winning both junior rainbow jerseys in Zurich, with Backstedt claiming both in Wollongong, Australia in 2022). The hilly nature of the course suits the 19-year-old, with 2,435m of climbing on the 119.3km route.
Ferguson has made the step up to World Tour racing this year with Spanish team Movistar, taking her first win at this level at the Tour of Britain this summer. She has been honest about the gulf between World Tour and lower-level riders, and the gap between junior and elite racing, saying: “The races I’ve been doing I’ve been doing a job for someone else or just holding on for dear life. It’s important to do some races where you can be a bit more competitive as well.”
