Global Riders to Watch: Tour du Rwanda 2022

The biggest race in Africa is upon us. This year, after the announcement that the 2025 Road Worlds will be held in Rwanda, the race seems to take on greater significance and status. 

There is a wealth of emerging African talent on show, looking to make their mark on the race..

Here are some riders to watch at the Tour du Rwanda 2022, starting with some of the local guys.

Rnus Byiza Uhiriwe

20, Rwanda, Rwanda National Team

Uhiriwe is one of the rising stars of cycling in Rwanda. Usually riding for the Qhubeka Continental Team, in this race he will be leading the Rwandan National Team. 

He won the African Continental Junior Championships in 2019, but for me his most impressive ride to date came at the Under-23 Worlds in 2021. The Under-23s was a gruelling, fast-paced race and Uhiriwe hung onto the front group right up until the last climb. 

Expect Uhiriwe to be challenging in the sprints. He’ll be up against the likes of Restrepo, Lagab and Örken. He’s aiming to become the first Rwandan stage winner in the race since it became a UCI 2.1 in 2019.

Samuel Mugisha

24, Rwanda, Pro Touch

Samuel Mugisha was the winner of the Tour du Rwanda in 2018 when he was just 20 years old. The standard wasn't quite as high that year, but Samuel put in a brilliant performance and showed his talent. He won stage two after making an early move with Mulu Hailemichael and Jean-Claude Uwizeye and held the lead throughout the race.

Prior to this, Mugisha had won the mountain jersey at Valle d'Aosta. He was unfortunate at this point that he wasn't picked up by a bigger team but has continued to work and now finds himself with big opportunities at Pro Touch.

Can he contend for the overall again this year?

Moise Mugisha

24, Rwanda, Pro Touch

Like Samuel, Moise Mugisha also joined Pro Touch in the middle of last season. He picked up 10th on GC in Rwanda the year his brother won and also rode to 2nd on stage 6.

Moise has picked up good wins as an under-23 in Tour de l'Espoir and Tour du Faso and in 2020 won two stages and the overall in GP Chantal Biya alongside 2nd on GC of the Tour du Rwanda behind Natnael Tesfatsion. He'll now hope for more experience racing in Europe and Asia with Pro Touch and at 24 he needs to kick-on and pick up some more results to deliver on his talent.

Samuel Niyonkuru

18, Rwanda, Rwanda National Team

Samuel Niyonkuru was 3rd at the African Continental Juniors last year.

He travelled with a few other young Rwandans to France to ride some national level races.

Niyonkuru also managed to finished the Junior Worlds Road Race which is a good achievement.

It's not clear how much to expect from him this week, but certainly one to keep an eye on.

Eric Muhoza

20, Rwanda, Rwandan National Team

Another rider on the Rwanda National Team. Watch out for them this week - so much good emerging talent. Muhoza should lead the team in the tougher stages.

Muhoza joined the trip to France last year and had a couple of good results: 14th at Tour des Mauges and 8th and Grand Prix Super U- Essarts. He also rode and finished the Tour de Vendée in 43rd place in a strong field, a very respectable result for a young man building experience.

Hopefully he can show his progression and the experience he is building in this race. A top-10 on a stage or a top-20 on GC are realistic targets.

Henok Mulubrhan

22, Eritrea, Bike Aid

Henok Mulubrhan has already started off his season in Antalya, landing an impressive 4th on stage 3 and 6th overall. This was a great start to the season and there is much more to come from Henok this year.

He will love the climbing stages in this race and will hope to be at the front. The standard here is perhaps slightly higher than in Antalya, but with some racing now in his legs he could be challenging for the win here.

A big result and his deserved pro contract gets that little bit closer.

Natnael Tesfatsion

22, Eritrea, Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli

Anyone who saw the Under 23 Worlds Road Race in 2021 knows how good Tesfatsion is. He put in an amazing performance to support Biniam Ghirmay to his 2nd place. He gets a chance to ride for himself here and could claim a big result.

Last season he rode his first grand tour at the Giro and claimed top-tens in stages of Coppi e Bartali, Tour of the Alps and the one-day Tour du Doubs.

Tesfatsion won this race in 2020 with a slightly weaker field. He comes into this race as one of the big favourites.

Azzedine Lagab

33, Algeria, Algeria National Team

Azzedine Lagab has been around for a long time winning races on the African circuit. His biggest win was probably the overall at GP Chantal Biya in 2019.

He has had a decent run at this race in the past, with two stage wins and 4th overall his best results in 2018. The field is stronger this year so it will be tough for him to repeat that this week.

Metkel Eyob

28, Eritrea, Terengganu Polygon Cycling Team

Metkel Eyob is in his fifth year at the Malaysian team. He is a strong climber and was 2nd here in 2016 and 2017. He's won 5 stages of this race in the past and would love to add to his tally and challenge in the GC this year. He has the ability and a strong team, particularly Antolii Budyak who is another contender for the overall.

Eyob has already started his season off well with 10th overall in Antalya. Let's hope he can kick on here and secure a big result.

Charles Kagimu

23, Uganda, Pro Touch

After four seasons at Bike Aid, Charles Kagimu has made the move over the Pro Touch.

Charles' best result probably came at this race last year when he finished 9th on a gruelling and decisive final stage. He finished in great company that day, just ahead of Jhonatan Restrepo and just behind Quentin Pacher. This result shows the kind of rider he is. He loves a hard day with some climbing.

He will hope to better that result this year. He and Kent Main are Pro Touch’s best chances of a good GC result.

Witthawat Waree

23, Thailand, Grant Thornton-Bike Zone

It was a surprise to see the Thai team get the late invite to Rwanda - especially when two African Continental Teams didn't get the call-up. It gives a good global feel to the race and is a good opportunity for these Thai riders to gain some valuable experience. 

The best of them is probably Witthawat Waree. He was 15th overall in the Tour of Thailand in 2020 with a couple of top-tens on stages. There are better Thai riders, but at 23 Waree has time to develop into a decent rider. 

Nasser Eddine Maatougui

19, Morocco, Morocco National Team

Maatougui's trade team Sidi Ali Unlock somehow didn't manage to get an invite to this race, so he's here with the national team.

Maatougui is a decent prospect. He finished in 9th place in the Tour du Faso last year and was 20th overall in Sharjah a few weeks ago. He has some good form going into this race. A top 20 overall would be a superb result.