Rwandan cyclists Martha Ntakirutimana, Charlotte Iragena and Banzi Buhari returned home with medals and renewed confidence after impressive performances at the Grand Prix International VTT Chantal Biya mountain bike race in Cameroon.
The trio, accompanied by national team coach Nathan Byukusenge, represented Rwanda at the third edition of the competition, held under the patronage of Cameroon’s First Lady, Chantal Biya.
Their performances earned Rwanda three podium finishes at the event, which attracted 90 cyclists from 15 countries.
The competition featured elite men’s and women’s categories contested over an 11.3-kilometre course in the Bagofit area.
In the elite women’s category, Ntakirutimana delivered a dominant performance to claim the gold medal, while Iragena finished second to complete a memorable one-two finish for Team Rwanda.
Buhari added a third medal for Rwanda after finishing third in the elite men’s race to secure bronze.
Speaking after her victory, Ntakirutimana described the gold medal as one of the proudest achievements of her career.
"I am extremely happy to win this gold medal for Rwanda. The competition was very strong, but I remained focused and trusted the training we had done before coming to Cameroon. This victory gives me confidence and motivation to continue working hard because I believe bigger achievements are still ahead of me,” she said.
Iragena said sharing the podium with her teammate made the achievement even more special.
"It feels amazing to win a medal at an international competition. Finishing on the podium together with Martha shows the progress we are making as athletes and as a team. This success encourages me to keep pushing and aiming for even better results in future races,” she said.
Team Rwanda coach Byukusenge said the riders’ success in Cameroon demonstrated the growing strength of Rwandan cycling and could inspire more young people to take up the sport.
"Such results show that Rwandan riders can compete and excel on the international stage. We hope these achievements will inspire more young people to take up the sport and dream of representing their country one day.”