Sunday, September 21 will be a day indelibly written into cycling's history books, as the day the sport's World Championships opened its doors to Rwanda as hosts, and Africa finally took centre stage, 104 years after Copenhagen hosted the inaugural edition.
Cycling's headline international event, which has predominantly been held in Europe but also ventured out to South America, North America and Asia since 1921, reached Africa for the first time for the elite men's and women's individual time trials, where some of the world's best came straight to the fore.
Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) and Marlen Reusser (Switzerland) claimed the titles and rainbow jerseys – perhaps an expected result – but for the local people of Rwanda and the many on the streets of Kigali, this level of stardom racing just metres in front of them was new territory.
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Several superstars from the Tour de France and Olympic Games arrived to race in front of the best backdrops of their nation, such as Tadej Pogačar (Slovenia) and Demi Vollering (Netherlands), but it was two Rwandan riders who got proceedings underway on Sunday from the BK Arena – Xaveline Nirere and Shemu Nsengiyumva.
While the moment Evenepoel overtook Pogačar up the final climb, having started 2:30 after him, stood out as an obvious key moment, the crowds and people of Rwanda were the real highlight – coming in their droves to watch the time trials unfold and podium ceremonies.
It was also just the start, with under-23 and junior races punctuating the schedule from Monday to Friday, before the biggest crowds of the race are expected to show up for the elite women's road race on Saturday, and the elite men's road race the day after, which will close out the 2025 World Championships.
We've compiled some of the best pictures from the opening, historic day's action, thanks to SWPix, showcasing all the sights from the bustling crowds, to the Remco Evenepoel fan club, and the riders who lit up the testing 31.2km and 40.6km courses in Kigali, Rwanda.
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(Image credit: Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com)
A glimpse of the scale and energy inside the start area within the BK Arena in Kigali
(Image credit: Simon Wilkinson/SWpix)
Moise Mugisha of Rwanda setting off from the BK Arena in the men's elite race
(Image credit: Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com)
Remco Evenerpoel fans amongst the enormous crowds in Kigali
(Image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Urška Žigart of Slovenia racing in the elite women's race
(Image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Demi Vollering on the final approach to the finish in the Kigali Convention Centre, where she would take third place
(Image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Cédrine Kerbaol of France showing the force of exertion on the roads of Kigali
(Image credit: Chris Auld/SWpix.com)
The USA's Ruth Edwards on the time trial circuit
(Image credit: Chris Auld/SWpix.com)
Local support was abundant on the roadsides across the weekend
(Image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Marlen Reusser celebrates her gold medal in the women's race for Switzerland
(Image credit: Chris Auld/SWpix.com)
Local spectators watching the women's elite race
(Image credit: Chris Auld/SWpix.com)
Victor Akpabli of Ghana riding in the men's elite race
(Image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Tadej Pogačar on the time trial course, en route to a disappointing fourth place in the men's elite race
(Image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
The iconic moment when Remco Evenepoel caught and overtook Tadej Pogačar on the cobbled streets of Kigali
(Image credit: Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com)
Tadej Pogačar's strained solo effort on the Kigali elite men's course
(Image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Remco Evenepoel rode into a decisive and euphoric victory in Kigali
(Image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Evenepoel's victory reframed the approach to the road race on Sunday, with the Belgian now edging into the territory of a clear favourite ahead of Tadej Pogačar
James Moultrie is a gold-standard NCTJ journalist who joined Cyclingnews as a News Writer in 2023 after originally contributing as a freelancer for eight months, during which time he also wrote for Eurosport, Rouleur and Cycling Weekly. Prior to joining the team he reported on races such as Paris-Roubaix and the Giro d’Italia Donne for Eurosport and has interviewed some of the sport’s top riders in Chloé Dygert, Lizzie Deignan and Wout van Aert. Outside of cycling, he spends the majority of his time watching other sports – rugby, football, cricket, and American Football to name a few.
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