Former Tour du Rwanda winner Joseph Areruya stamped his authority in local cycling over the weekend as he claimed the ‘Patriotism Race’ in the men's elite category. Diane Ingabire finished top in the women's classic.

Areruya, 25, clocked two hours, 28 minutes and 51 seconds to win the 105km ride in Kigali, nearly four minutes ahead of runner-up Eric Manizabayo, who is also his teammate at Ignite Benediction club.

Largely because of lack of consistent training for many participants as a result of the long break on cycling competitions owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, only ten riders out of 58 entrants were able to complete the race’s 15 laps while 48 abandoned.

Meanwhile, Ingabire took home the top prize in the women's race after using two hours, 16 minutes and 31 seconds to finish the 63km – nine laps – of the race, just two seconds better than runner-up Valentine Ndayisenga.

Only seven riders on the 15-woman entry list finished the race.

The Patriotism race was the first cycling competition organised in the country since the Tour du Rwanda 2021 in May.