Riders in the Tour du Faso
(Image credit: AFP Photo)
Africa got two huge boosts from Kenyan native Chris Froome's Tour de France win and South African Daryl Impey's time in the maillot jaune. Froome went back to Kenya to see hsi mentor David Kinja and riders from his former team Safari Simbaz
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A family watch cyclists during the first stage of the 2013 Tour of Beijing
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Yukira Arashiro, Fumi Beppu, Christophe Riblon, Chris Froome, Peter Sagan, Marcel Kittel and Rui Costa pose with Bernard Hinault at the Saitama Criterium.
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Chris Froome and Rui Costa took some Sumo lessons while in Japan.
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Jack Bauer (Garmin-Sharp) takes the sprint for second at the Japan Cup road race.
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Europcar's Yohann Gene won the overall Tropicale Amissa Bongo.
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Jack Bauer, Michael Rogers and Damiano Cunego made up the Japan Cup road race podium.
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The Japan Cup podium: Matteo Trentin, Steele von Hoff and Bernhard Eisel
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A cyclist of Lotto-Belisol team watches a performance as he prepares for the start of the first stage of the 2013 Tour of Beijing
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Juan Antonio Flecha (Vacansoleil) enjoys the sun at the start of Tour of Beijing
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The Chinese fans make their own sunshine at the Tour of Beijing
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Tour du Faso stage 1 winner Issaka Kabre rehydrates.
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Burkina Faso's Issaka Kabre wins the first stage of the Tour du Faso
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The Tour du Faso in Burkina Faso.
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Cyclists pass crowds of spectators in Huye during the fifth edition of the Tour of Rwanda
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Cyclists pass crowds of spectators in Nyamagabe during the fifth edition of the Tour of Rwanda
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Togo's Monglo Toure, France's Mederic Clain and Rwanda's Emile Bintu Dinano celebrate on stage 3 podium in the Democratic Republic of Congo cycling Tour
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The Asian races always feature local performers in colourful costumes.
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It's not every day you can watch a bike race from one of the wonders of the world.
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Nacer Bouhanni phones home after his Tour of Beijing stage win
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The fans really enjoyed the passage of the Tour of Beijing
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Europcar at the head of affairs at the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon.
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Lampre-Merida, MTN-Qhubeka and Cofidis were among the European teams at the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon.
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Cyclists ride through a country road during the first stage of the 2013 Tour of Beijing
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Peter Sagan, Chris Froome and Rui Costa on the podium at the Saitama Criterium.
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Chris Froome, Peter Sagan and Rui Costa take part in the Saitama Criterium.
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Chris Froome "won" the Saitama Criterium.
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Rui Costa, Chris Froome and Christophe Riblon demonstrate their Sumo poses.
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Chris Froome meets the fans at the Saitama criterium in Japan
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Flowers at the Japan Cup road race.
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At the end of the season, the riders deserve to take a big swallow of the podium champagne.
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Dan Martin and Steele von Hoff celebrate the team's win at the Japan Cup.
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Thor Hushovd (BMC) salutes after winning the opening stage of Tour of Beijing
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Tour de France winner Chris Froome shows of his maillot jaune at the head of the Saitama criterium in Japan.
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Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ) enjoyed success at the Tour of Beijing
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The Tropicale Amissa Bongo is one of the biggest races in Africa, and attracts some European teams.
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Fans cheer on the riders on stage six of the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon.
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Benat Intxausti (Movistar) celebrates his win in Beijing
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Luka Mezgec (Argos-Shimano) snuck in a late-season stage win at Tour of Beijing
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David Lopez Garcia, Benat Intxausti and Daniel Martin made up the final Tour of Beijing podium
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The peloton had a few more climbs in this year's Tour of Beijing
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Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ) celebrates his win on stage 3 of Tour of Beijing
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The Tour of Beijing had a special call-up area for the classification leaders
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The BMC team controls the race on stage 2 of the Tour of Beijing
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Richie Porte (Sky) leads the peloton through a turn at the Japan Cup.
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Cycling has been on the upswing, thanks to the globalisation of the sport, and two prime areas of development are in Africa and Asia. The UCI and the major European race promoters have helped to stimulate the cycling economy in these regions, bringing new races onto the WorldTour stage as well as offering up opportunities for regional racers to face off against the Europeans.
In Africa, the Tour du Faso in Burkina Faso, the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon and the Tour of Rwanda are some of the top races, while China tends to dominate in Asia, especially since the advent of the Tour of Beijing WorldTour race.
This year the ASO stepped in to promote the Saitama Criterium in Japan which attracted the top Tour de France riders: Chris Froome, Peter Sagan and world champion Rui Costa. The Japan Cup also hosted a strong field, with the road race won by Saxo-Tinkoff's Michael Rogers and the criterium taken out by Steele von Hoff.
While the race action may look the same no matter which continent hosts the event, the scenery, spectators and overall atmosphere is unique to each country as the hosts try to inject some local culture.
We hope you enjoy this gallery of images from our photo provider AFP from these emerging events.
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