Adrien Niyonshuti, a cycling legend on the continent and arguably the most successful Rwandan rider, is training the Béninois national team ahead of the impending 2022 Tour du Benin.

Niyonshuti, who represented Rwanda twice in Olympic Games, has been tasked to prepare the Benin team and put the riders in shape to compete for the yellow jersey.

The 17th edition of the annual race gets underway on May 2, and will run through May 8 in the West African country.

No Béninois cyclist has won the race since 2004 and the appointment of Niyonshuti to have sessions with this year’s roster is widely seen as a masterstroke move to enable them end the 18-year wait for the competition’s top prize.

Niyonshuti won the 2008 Tour du Rwanda and, for nearly a decade – from 2009 to 2017, competed at World Tour stage with South African side Dimension Data before retiring in 2018.

He is credited for unearthing young talents through his academy, Adrien Niyonshuti Cycling Academy.