Two gold medals and a silver medal for Henok, a gold medal and a fourth place for Dawit Yemane. This is the incredible result of the BIKE AID riders at the African Championships in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The crazy thing: two other Eritreans achieve fabulous results in the last week, their home country goes crazy with joy.
Last Wednesday, the crazy story began. In the team time trial of the African Championships, Henok, Dawit and two other teammates left their competitors no chance. With an average speed of almost 49 kp/h and a comfortable lead, they took the gold medal!
One day later it was time for the individual time trial. Here only the South African Gustav Basson had better legs than Henok. With six seconds behind, the Eritrean rides to a strong second place! Dawit just missed the podium and finished fourth.
After a two-day break, it was now on to the road race, the highlight of the African Championships. Near the Egyptian coast, the riders faced seven laps on a 22-kilometer circuit.
In the final, van Rensburg sprints 1400 watts for twelve seconds and finishes second. However, one is faster, it is Henok! Based on the values, you can guess what kind of incredible performance the only 22-year-old has shown on this day!
The pictures and videos after the finish show the cheering fans and a nation celebrating their hero. The pride and joy can be seen in Henok, and rightly so! A medal would already have been a success. With two gold and one silver medal in three disciplines, all expectations are exceeded.
Just shortly after Mulubrhan's victory on the road, another Eritrean makes African sports history. Biniam Girmay wins Gent-Wevelgem and becomes the first African to win a WorldTour race! On this day he leaves no chance to the hot favorites Van Aert, Philipen or Mohoric.
Moreover, Natnael Tesfatsion, winner of the 2022 Tour du Rwanda, also attracts attention last Sunday. At the 1.Pro race GP Industria in Italy, the Eritrean only barely loses the sprint and finishes in a strong fourth place.
Just a day earlier, he finished the five-day Tour of Coppi e Bartali in the top 10 behind names like Marc Hirschi and Diego Ulissi.
Last week sent the nation in northeast Africa into a state of euphoria. The whole continent showed what an incredible talent and potential it has and gives confidence to African cycling!
Pictures from Filmon Hadish
