Date: Friday, 26 September 2025
Eritrea's Biniam Girmay has spoken out about his doubts over competing at the 2025 UCI Road World Championships, a landmark event held for the first time in Africa, saying the course was too challenging and offered little opportunity for riders from competing African nations.
The 25-year-old is a multiple-time Tour de France stage winner racing for Intermarché-Wanty and the silver medallist in the under-23 elite men's race at the 2021 Worlds in Leuven. He likened the elite men's road race to the Monument Liège-Bastogne-Liège, saying the route would not suit him and, in fact, would only suit a very few select riders on the WorldTour.
"I can answer this in a quite simple way. In Liège-Bastogne-Liège, I cannot go, I never go, even in Il Lombaria, because it is quite hard and I don't want to go there just to be at the start, to be dropped, it's not nice," Girmay told the assembled press at the Kigali Convention Centre on Friday.
The majority of the Road World Championships over the last century have been held in Europe and, on rare occasions, reached North America, South America, Asia, and Oceania. However, this edition has finally reached Africa, marking a landmark moment and delivering on a long-time promise from the UCI to globalize the sport of cycling.
Girmay questioned why the sport's governing body would create one of the toughest courses in the event's history, which would cater to so few athletes.
"Especially in this kind of occasion. It's the first time in Africa. It's within reach for us, African riders, but if you see this parcours, it's never good for any African riders. Even if you say to me a name, it's really hard for everyone. It's not nice, to be honest, because it's the first time in Africa, so it might have been better to give more opportunities to the African riders because, yeah, if you see now, already in the junior time trials, everything, we don't have it because it's way harder for African riders."
The elite men's race features a 15.1km city circuits, nine at the start and six at the end, along with the additional challenge of a mid-race extension loop that boast three more climbs; Côte de Péage, which is 1.8km at 5.9%, Mount Kigali is the longest climb at 5.9km at 6.9% and peaks at 1,771 metres altitude, and the famed Mur de Kigali, which is only 400m but features unruly cobbles and is punishingly steep with an average of 11%. The peloton will race a total of 267.5km with 5,475m of elevation gain.
"It would be nice if it gave more opportunities to the African riders. So, that is why I was in doubt at the beginning of the season. It's very hard, the parcours. For me, I always like to be there and to compete or try to do something, especially for myself," said Girmay, who made a delayed decision to line up for Eritrea to support his national team in Kigali.
"Now, I always like to get a good result and make the best out of it, but at the end of the day, I am always happy to wear my national team jersey and represent my country. The national team asked me to be there to help the team, and I accepted it 100% and that is why I'm here to support my teammates."
Defending champion Tadej Pogačar and many competing athletes have spoken to the media and on social channels about how much they have been enjoying their time in Kigali, noting the historic significance of the Road Worlds being held in the African country of Rwanda.
