Cycling | Mountain Biking

Evans and Niyonshuti set their sights on DCM Cape Pioneer Trek

12 October 2010, 08:52

Evans and Niyonshuti set their sights on DCM Cape Pioneer Trek stage race

A sure way for any sport journalist to get proverbial egg over his face is to make bold predictions about the outcome of a sports event before it even happens.

Despite this it would be stupid not to tip Kevin Evans and Adrien Niyonshuti (MTN-Energade) as the favourites to win the six day DCM Cape Pioneer Trek mountain bike tour (18-23 October).

This year’s results speak for itself. It seems as if Evans just does not get beaten once the going gets really tough during races. He proved it by winning four of the first six races in the MTN ultra-marathon series.

From a DCM Cape Pioneer Trek perspective it is interesting to note that Evans has won the MTN Attakwas ultra-marathon by riding away from everybody else. The Attakwas is also the first stage of the tour.

His victories at Sabie and Clarens is further prove that at the moment there are very few local riders that can keep up with Evans on hard and technical climbs.

However it is not just his climbing ability that makes Evans near invincible once he is on his mountain bike. He is also very astute when it comes to race tactics knowing how to do the right thing at the right time.

Panic is not a word that exists in Evans’s vocabulary.

In contrast to Evans Niyonshuti, the young rider from Rwanda, is a rough diamond. What is exciting is the fact that he is definitely improving with each race.

Last year he was still considered to be just another talented rider, but this year things certainly are changing.

Niyonshuti has with his consistent performances in the MTN ultra-marathon series and the Nissan-series managed to earn the respect of all of South Africa’s best mountain bikers.

So far he is one of the most consistent performers in the MTN-series with five top five finishes in six outings. His best result was finishing 2nd in the MTN 50 Miler. He was also 4th in Barberton and 5th respectively in the Attakwas, Clarens and Cullinan races.

Niyonshuti also won the Tyger Valley and Down and Dirty races in the Nissan-series.

In his short life of 23 years, Niyonshuti has experienced unimaginable horrors but it seems as if these setbacks have just made him more motivated to train harder and push himself to the limit. He meets life’s challenges head-on and, by doing so, he sets an example to all of us.

The short version of Niyonshuti’s life started in 1994 during the genocide in Rwanda in which nearly 800 000 people (roughly estimated at 20% of the country’s population) were killed in a period of six months. He lost seven brothers.

According to Jock Boyer, technical director of the Rwanda Cycling Federation, Niyonshuti’s best friend, Godfrey, was run over and killed by a motorist while he was riding on his bicycle. Godfrey, an up-and- coming cyclist, was a young orphan who lived with his mentor, Adrien, in Rwanda.

The accident happened shortly after Niyonshuti’s father died 18 months ago from an unknown disease. Niyonshuti lives with his mother in a town called Rwamagana in Rwanda. Adrien has used his race winnings to make improvements to his mother’s house. It now has electricity, cement floors and running water.

According to Boyer, Adrien Niyonshuti is a rider with a remarkable talent. He also has a drive to succeed that surpasses that of most other athletes.

“When I met him almost four years ago, his perseverance soon became apparent. To take part in the Olympics is an important goal for him, but I sincerely hope that he will be able to continue with his cycling career until long after the 2012 Games. Through his cycling exploits, Adrian has become a symbol of hope for many youngsters in Rwanda.

“He won the Tour of Rwanda two years ago and was 3rd overall last year. Not many people know that Rwanda is becoming a growing centre for cycling in central and east Africa. The country is perfectly suited for both road riding and mountain bike riding.

As far as the DCM Cape Pioneer Trek is concerned Evans made it clear that they are going to take it one stage at a time.

“I was actually not planning to do the tour, but when Adrien asked me if I would ride with him I could not refuse.

“Adrien is using the tour as part of his preparation for the Tour of Rwanda.

“The Cape Pioneer Trek is really hard a tour therefore I think it would be wise to start out conservatively and see how things develop. If our legs hold up and an opportunity to win overall arrise we will certainly be going for it.”

For more information visit www.capepioneer.co.za www.dryland.co.za

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