Rwandan veteran cyclist Joseph Areruya has committed himself to nurturing new talents and prepare them into top cyclists of the future. Areruya was appointed assistant coach at Java Inovate after announcing his retirement from professional cycling at the age of 28. He was playing for the same club at which he is launching his coaching career. “I want to be part of development of the cycling in Rwanda by helping young riders to become better. I am happy with my achievements (as a professional cyclist) but I want young riders to achieve more than I did,” Areruya told Times Sport. Areruya is a big name in the Rwanda cycling arena, thanks to the accolades that he collected under his belt during his playing career. He won Tour du Rwanda in 2017 before winning two top continental prizes the following year during which he won La Tropicale Amissa Bongo 2018 and Tour de l’Espoir 2018 after which he was ranked number one cyclist in Africa. He is now eager to achieve more as a coach and he wants to start from young riders. “It is time to think how we can work together as coaches and other stakeholders in order to develop many young riders who will become the future of our country,” he said. “We have some young cyclists who will challenge for titles in future so the most important is to build, train, impact, empower and help them by racing in many races.” He added, “The right time to think about the careers of youth and transition and post-sport future is now. We can create numerous opportunities designed specifically young riders so that they can get more chances to compete in many races which can help them in their development.” Areruya is arguably one of the most successful cyclists in Rwanda. Kirehe Race, held in the weekend of October 19-20, was his last competition before deciding to give his cycling life a new direction.
