EVERY YEAR Tour du Rwanda comes around and as expected it is one of the busiest times of the year as cyclists from around the world descend on the country to compete for the top prize. Tour du Rwanda concluded on Sunday, February 27, with Rwanda’s Moise Mugisha winning the 8th and final stage which was flagged off by President Paul Kagame, while Eritrean Natnael Tesfazion won the 14th edition of the annual tour. Since its upgrade in 2019, the cycling competition has been an opportunity for artistes and celebrities to make some extra cash appearing in the activities of different sponsors. Though the Covid-19 outbreak did set back the competition as it did to many other activities, this year several celebrities did manage to secure some gigs. Below we present to you celebrities who cashed in on this year’s edition. Platini Platini Nemeye has literally become a permanent fixture in Tour du Rwanda, particularly appearing with Cogebanque. The ‘Shumuleta’ singer enjoys back-to-back gigs with the bank, gracing the caravan and performing before cycling mad fans for the entire week. His appearance started back in the day when he was still a member of the Dream Boys but even after the departure of Claude ‘TMC’ Mujyanama, the other half of the group, he continued to secure the bag whenever the cycling tour returns. He has previously featured with Canal Plus and Rwanda Foam. Queen Cha Not a lot of music has been released by Queen Cha over the past two years or so but it appears she still has those who consider her a force to reckon with. Queen Cha, who has been silent in recent months, reappeared in Tour du Rwanda as part of the Rwanda Foam caravan. The singer was seen frolicking with the riders and her fans to the different stages of the tour. Queen Cha (middle), was busy during Tour du Rwanda. She has also been flooding her social media platforms with photos of herself enjoying the races over the past 8 days. Going by the constant posting and the beaming smile she wielded, there is no doubt that the paycheque was impressive. The singer appears on Rwanda Foam adverts and also advertises different products. Clapton Kibonge and Ndimbati Comedians Clapton Kibonge and Ndimbati were all smiles as they crisscrossed the country with Techno Market Rwanda, a local printing and branding house. The duo enjoyed a fun-filled tour and probably a mouth-watering offer as they freely went around posing for pictures and donning branded materials of their sponsor. It is not clear how much they were paid but sources say they earned between Rwf1m and Rwf1.5m while other costs and expenses were taken care of. Both Kibonge and Ndimbati brought their power to the tour and were a source of laughter even without cracking a joke. Gratien Niyitegeka The actor and comedian who was made popular by the series ‘Seburikoko’ and his comical skit ‘Papa Sava’ has been busy in Tour du Rwanda with ‘MySol’, which was previously known as Mobisol. Niyitegeka, who is very popular with the locals, turned up the heat during the Tour du Rwanda caravan as he went about cracking jokes and promoting his sponsor. It is fair to say that several DJs, many dancers and hosts such as media personality David Bayingana, got an opportunity to work for an extra franc during Tour du Rwanda 2022.
