National cycling team head coach Rwanda David Louvet has admitted that the highly-anticipated that the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Rwanda will be more difficult to compete for than the previous races. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) officially unveiled the race routes for the global cycling showpiece which will take place in Rwanda from September 21-28, 2025. The organizers have prepared a brutal course which promises to shatter the peloton into several pieces. Speaking to Dutch news outlet NOS, Louvet said that the 2024 race in Zurich was very difficult but predicted an even more difficult challenge in Kigali in 2025. ALSO READ: Rwanda hires top European firms to organise 2025 UCI Road World Champs “I would not be surprised if only twenty runners reached the finish,” Louvet said “Everyone knows the Kigali Wall, with its cobblestones and super steep slopes. It will be early in the journey next year, but it will be super hard. I wouldn't be surprised if only twenty runners reached the finish,” he added. Even if the Kigali Wall (0.4 km at 11%), combined with Mount Kigali (5.9 km at 6.9%), will only be contested once, 100 kilometers from the finish, the local circuit will be covered 15 times and will constitute a challenge with the Côte de Kigali Golf (0.8 km at 8.1%) and the Côte de Kimihurura (1.3 km at 6.3%). ALSO READ: UCI unveils routes for 2025 Road World Championship in Rwanda Cyclists will cover a total distance of 5,500 meters of positive altitude difference. Rwanda has a sad history with the infamous genocide against the Tutsi that took place three decades ago. It is still remembered. But through common efforts, the Rwandan people are doing their best to write a new chapter in their history. The 2025 World Championships is a ray of sunshine for the East African nation. It is certain that this championship will attract large crowds (as the Tour du Rwanda manages to do year after year). The 2025 UCI Road World Championship is not just significant for Rwanda, but for the entire African continent. ALSO READ: Rwanda 2025 Road World Champs: The nation's growing status as a sporting hub The event will showcase Africa’s readiness to host major international sporting events and inspire the growth of cycling across the region. The inclusion of a separate Women Under 23 race for the first time reflects a commitment to gender equality in the sport, a value Rwanda proudly champions.
