Former American triathlete Max Fenell and Paralympian Greta Neimanas on Tuesday, May 20, paid a visit to Bugesera Cycling Club and held cycling clinics with young cyclists from the team. The visit, which runs through Thursday, May 22, was part of the US Embassy’s ‘Sports Diplomacy’ programme as a tool for community building, leadership development and job creation. Fennell and Neimanas are two athletes who have achieved a lot of accolades in their career. Fennel is the first African American pro triathlete in the U.S. while Neimanas is a professional cyclist. During their visit, the duo held a brief training session with the team’s young cyclists at the Field of Dreams, a cycling trail built in Ntarama courtesy of a support from Israel Premier Tech. Neimanas said that she and her counterpart wanted to meet the young cyclists to inspire them to become the next champions in the sport. “We were able to come here today because of the work of the embassy and BCT worked together to plan this visit to come this incredible, incredible facility and school. I think that base is going to produce really competitive future athletes in competition if they choose to,” Neimanas said. BCT vice-president Liliane Kayirebwa said that the clinics with the two top athletes will help in inspiring young athletes within the team to dream big in their careers. “It is a big privilege to have athletes like these with us because it inspires the young athletes to pursue their dream. So it means a lot to us and to the team,” Kayirebwa said. Before the clinics, the athletes paid tribute to victims laid to rest at Ntarama Genocide Memorial, right after meeting Bugesera Mayor Richard Mutabazi to discuss areas of cooperation in cycling at the place which is regarded as on Rwanda’s cycling hubs. “This is my first time in Rwanda, and it's been amazing to see how big cycling is just for everyday life. It's part of the lifestyle, and that's very different than in the U.S.” “It's been really nice seeing folks riding bikes all over the place for transportation, for competition, for fun, for camaraderie. And so that's just been really amazing seeing how cycling is ingrained in the whole lifestyle,” the former Paralympian said. Fenell and Neimanas also met Minister of Sports Nelly Mukazayire where they held talks centred at strengthening Rwanda–U.S. ties through sports diplomacy, advancing inclusive athletic development, and promoting youth engagement across cycling and par cycling. The meeting, according to the Ministry, also explored opportunities to support Rwanda’s journey toward becoming a global sports hub ahead of the 2025 UCI Road World Championships.
