S. African takes stage one

As Niyonshuti finishes 5th Tour of Rwanda Stage 1 (162.8km) resultsKigali-Kabarondo-Kigali (Top 5) 1) J.V Rensburg Reinardt (S.A) 3:53:452) D Teklehaimanot (ERI) 3:53:453) D Craven (NAM) 3:53:454) M. Russom (ERI) 3:53:455) A. Niyonshuti (RWA) 3:53:45 Today Kigali - Gicumbi - Kigali (116km) SOUTH Africa’s ace rider Janse Van Rensburg Reinhardt used patience and experience to get through yesterday’s competitive opening stage of this year’s Tour of Rwanda.Reinhardt and four other riders sailed home in 3 hours, 53 minutes and 45 seconds, but after bringing the electronic footage into play, the MTN Energade rider was pronounced winner of the 162.8km race which saw cyclists riding to Kabarondo and back. While conceding that it was too early to celebrate, the 22-year-old told Times Sport that it felt good beating African continental champion, Daniel Teklehaimanot.“It feels great to beat him because he is a tough lad,” the South African said. The Eritrean finished second while Namibia’s Dan Craven, Eritrea’s Meror Russom and Rwanda’s favourite Adrien Niyonshuti came in third, fourth and fifth slots, respectively. Reinhardt also pocketed a bonus $652 (about Rwf338, 350) for the stage win. Today, stage two will see riders pedaling their bikes to Gicumbi and back. The 116km mildly challenging route is split into three stages; a 50km climb, 60km slope and a 6km climb at the end. 120 riders from 16 teams are in contention in this year’s edition which will cover a total 1119.1km spread over eight stages. The teams include Castelsarrasin from France, Belgium’s Flanders AVIA, Team Type 1 of USA, Seychelles, Kenya, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Cameroon, Great Lakes team, new African champions Eritrea, UCI Continental and two teams for Rwanda; Team Rwanda Akagera and Team Rwanda. Morocco’s Adil Jelloul won last year’s edition. Tigo, Rwanda Development Board (RDB), Western Union, Ministry of Sports and Culture, Fina Bank and Reco-Rwasco have all thrown their weight behind the tour. Ends