Shadrack Ufitimana of Les Amis Sportifs and Domina Ingabire of Bugesera Cycling Team were on Sunday, August 20, crowned the champions of the second edition of the Youth Racing Cup held at The Field of Dreams in Bugesera District.

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Organized by Rwanda’s cycling governing body (Ferwacy) in partnership with I&M Bank, the race seeks to streamline talent development from grassroots.

The second edition attracted five teams competing in four categories namely Benjamins (U-13), Minimes (U-15), cadets (U-17) and juniors (U-19) in both boys and girls.

Ufitimamana won the men juniors race after covering a distance of 36km in 1 hour 10 minutes and 18 seconds. Sadam Niyonkuru of Muhazi Cycling Club and Jean Pierre Marifa Les Amis Sportifs finished as first and second runner-ups using 1 hour 11 minutes and 26 seconds and 1 hour 14 minutes and 13 seconds respectively.

Meanwhile, Ingabire emerged as the winner of women juniors’ category, racing 22.8km in 52 minute and 36 seconds. She crossed the finish line three seconds clear of second-placed Charlotte Iragena and five second Mariata Byukusenge who completed the top three podium. The entire trio rides for Bugesera Cycling Team.

In the cadets&039; category, Les Amis Sportifs rising rider Pacifique Byusa came out on top after racing 24km in 50 minutes and 31 seconds. His teammate Robert Shema came next 41 seconds later while J. Shema Munderereneza of Kigali Cycling Club finished third after clocking 54 minutes and 55 seconds to cover the same distance.

Clementine Ingabire (individual) won the girls cadet race after covering 24 kilometers in 39 minutes and 11seconds. She was followed by Yvonne Masengesho of Ndabaga Women Cycling Team who used 33 minutes and 3 seconds and Bugesera Cycling Team’s Fany Ishimwe who finished third using 34 minutes and 43 seconds.

In minims category, Emmanuel Shema of Les Amis Sportifs won the race, overcoming stiff competition from Issa Gisubizo of Bugesera Cycling Team and his teammate Isiaka Ndayisaba who finished third. Bugesera Cycling’s trio Cynthia Ishimwe, Claudine Niyomukiza and Divine Niyogisubizo finished were the top finishers in girls’ minims race respectively.

And, for the first time, the race introduced a new category for the under-13 (Benjamins) to allow more children to compete. Francis Sano won the 6-kilometer race in 16 minutes and 50 seconds. Prince Kwibuka and Blaise Ndashimye completed the top three after covering the same distance in 17 minutes and 48 seconds and 17 minutes and 50 seconds respectively.

Naella Gakwaya was awarded the gold medal in the Benjamins girls as she was the lone female rider who attended the race in that category.

It’s a race that left cycling enthusiasts, especially officials and partners, impressed by the progress that teams are making in pushing children’s cycling career to the next level at a very young age.

FERWACY Technical Advisor Simon Huppertz said that the progress is visible although he is cautious that achieving their goals won’t be a one-night dream.

"You can see the children are enjoying the sport and it is very promising. This is just the second edition and you can see the growth,” said Huppertz.

"We dream big and the objective of this project cannot be accomplished in one day but I can assure you that the process is bright. We still have a long way to go but, with time and support from Ferwacy, Ministry of Sports and other partners, we believe that it may take some time but worth waiting,” he added.

Vincent Karangwa, the federation vice president said that the new project has started taking shape which, he said, signals that Rwanda can produce new cycling stars who can bring the country back to the top on the continent.

"It is taking shape now, even though the numbers are still low compared to where we want to be. The competition today was a bit higher than the first edition’s,” said Karangwa.

"We are on holiday, so I recommend parents to let their children join this beautiful sport and it has a bright future to those who recognize it,” he added.

The project is expected to attract more than 4,000 young cyclists by 2025 and I&M Bank has made its commitment to be part of the journey of raising new cycling stars from a very young age.

"We decided to sponsor this race because it matches our ambitions which is helping and contributing to the development of the youth. This race is one of many other things we invest in for the sake of youth development because youth is the future of this country and the world in general,” said Roger Mugisha, I&M Bank representative.

"We want this race to open doors for young Rwandan cyclists to join the sport because our mission is to see their development and we know that talent development starts at a young age,” Mugisha added.