Sample text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit nullam nunc justo sagittis suscipit ultrices.
Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of meeting some truly inspiring individuals within the cycling community — people who are doing incredible work both on and off the bike. One of those individuals is Jeremy Ford, a UK-based Director and Trustee of the Qhubeka Charity.
Jeremy has kindly contributed to various aspects of Together We Ride (TWR), sharing his insights, experiences, and passion for using cycling as a force for good. While currently in France covering the Tour de France, Jeremy has taken the time to share this powerful story with us — and we’re excited to share it with you.
The eagle-eyed among you watching the Tour de France last week might have seen a grey and yellow single-speed bicycle being ridden on the course by an athlete at the start of Stage 13 and wondered what on earth was going on?!
The athlete in question was Rwandan-born Adrien Niyonshuti. 38-yo Niyonshuti is a retired professional cyclist, having raced at the World Tour and Pro Conti level for ten years (2009-2018), several cycling World Championships, and two Olympics (London 2012, Rio 2016). His pro career was with the MTN Energade/Dimension Data for Qhubeka team, known at the time informally as “Africa’s Team”.
The team was from South Africa, and had a strong relationship with the Qhubeka Charity based there. Qhubeka is a social mobility charity which manufactures single-speed bicycles for distribution to school children to help them get to school more easily and pass their exams. Children there can walk up to six hours a day to and from school: a bicycle can cut this to 30-60 minutes.
In 2018, impressed with how Qhubeka was changing lives in Africa with bicycles, and with the Tour de France running a major project called ‘Un velo pour tous’ (a domestic campaign to get a bike for all kids), the organisers of the Tour de France approached the charity to become their international partner. 2025 is now the seventh year of this relationship, with funds raised putting nearly 3,000 more children on bicycles.
In 2022, with the relaunch of the women’s race, Qhubeka’s partnership extended to the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. Each year, Qhubeka then plans a high-profile activation at the race.
This year, it was for an athlete to take on and complete the nasty Stage 13 ITT course, rising from 900m to 1600m, finishing on a 16% 400m ramp to the finish line. The TDF course director, Thierry Gouvenou, told Adrien and the charity the day before that this challenge was simply impossible, with his 10+ years of course design. Adrien, hailing originally from Rwanda – the land of a thousand hills, and now the Head Coach of the Benin Cycling Federation in West Africa, simply replied: “I know the harsh conditions and challenges that the schoolchildren whom Qhubeka helps face every day. I think I can ride a bicycle up a mountain.”
And that he did! Incredibly, he rode the course in 58 minutes on the 15kg bicycle. The young TDF professionals completed the course in around 31 minutes, so on a bike 2-3 times heavier, and with one gear, he was only twice their time. He is an incredible athlete and an inspiration. To learn more about TWR’s friends at Qhubeka, visit www.qhubeka.org
To learn more about Adrien, you can watch the award-winning Rising From Ashes documentary on his life in the lead up to the London 2012 Olympics – now on YouTube for free.
This post was written by Jeremy Ford, a UK-based Director & Trustee of the Qhubeka Charity.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Comment *
Name *
Email *
Website
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Post Comment
We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you’ve provided to them or that they’ve collected from your use of their services.
