The Tour de France is the largest cycling competition in the world, and Biniam Girmay is the first Black rider to win a stage. He declared that his triumph was “a win for all Africans.” To him, it means everything, though. More significantly, though, is that it represents a great deal of significance to the thousands of young men and women who are developing as cyclists throughout the African continent. Years have passed since this was created. In 2009, I launched it in Rwanda. It’s amazing to see someone like Biniam rise through the ranks and become part of history after 15 years of hard work. Most days, I’m not even sure how to describe it. Eritrea, where Biniam Girmay hails from, is a difficult nation. Similar to most African nations, obtaining a visa to travel to Europe is exceedingly challenging. On the African continent, bike equipment is scarce. We don’t have access to instruction. The internet can be extremely difficult to use in various situations, such as Eritrea. Thus, before they even reach the starting line, European and even American cyclists have a number of advantages. It’s considerably more difficult for Biniam because she has so much to overcome. While reading about Biniam, I became intrigued to see that Eritrea’s cycling culture was influenced by the Italian colonists who brought cycling to the country.
