Team Qhubeka has often been talked about (today Q36.5) and how important it was in the evolution of African cycling. Douglas's creation Ryder However, it is not the only one that has acted in this direction: since 2005 there has been a German team, Bike Aid, who grew up away from the clamor of the WorldTour, but building something solid. Suffice it to say that between contributors and sponsors, there are over 1.200 people who in various capacities participate in the evolution of the team.
Many are the riders who have passed through its ranks and one of these has recently hit the headlines, the Eritrean Henok Mulubrhan, continental champion for two years and on whom a connoisseur like Patrick has set his sights Lefevere and which is currently running at Green Project-Bardiani.
To tell us more about the history and motivations of the German team is its sporting director, Anton Wiersma who has long devoted all his energies to the cause.
«Bike Aid started as a simple local reality – he says – but Matthias Schnaps and Thyme Schaefer they wanted to make something bigger out of it and since 2014 the team has become professional, at continental levelTimo left the team for new experiences last year, Matthias is still with us, with the same enthusiasm as always."
How are the riders who join the team selected?
We have a really diverse team, a real multinational with a base of German riders, but also French and Dutch and then there is Dawit Yemane and Eric Muhoza, respectively from Eritrea and Rwanda. Honestly, we get a lot of applications, a lot of people ask us to join the team. We study them, we see them both on and off the racetrack. For example, we have some contacts in Africa who tell us about local riders and the races they compete in, which is really valuable for us. For German riders, our training ground is the National League, the Bundesliga, where our development team races. This year, two guys from there were promoted.
Based on your experience, which African countries are already a reality for cycling, and which ones can be done much more?
Interesting question. Of course, the easiest to say is Eritrea. They already have a great history with good cyclists. We all know Daniel. Teklehaimanot, who was the first African to wear the polka-dot jersey in 2015. Then there's South Africa, which already has some really good cyclists with facilities similar to ours. But obviously this is a different kind of Africa than, for example, Kenya, without a cycling tradition because people used to dedicate themselves to running, but where now there is also a lot of attention from, for example, Ineos, who is working hard thereAnd there are still many countries where there is much more room for development.
Which ones for example?
Il Rwanda is now quite interesting and booming, with The World Championships are coming up and with the biggest UCI state race in Africa. In fact, it is also an object of great interest from an economic point of view.
How important is the contribution of popular subscriptions promoted by the site to your business?
It's important that people understand the project we're working on. The community behind us really helps us with this and is also donating money directly, going to Africa to improve cycling.We can't just focus on the team; our project is broader. And for this reason, we hope the community will continue to grow.
Henok Mulubrhan, now African champion and ready to enter the WorldTour, also passed through your ranks. What can you tell me about him?
He's a truly special rider, but above all, a good guy, honestly. He was on Team Qhubeka, and was about to move to the WT back then, but then the well-known problems arose. Henok suffered from that situation. He contacted us asking if there was a place available for him on the team.We were full, but given his talent, it was a really great opportunity. With us, in fact He only did two stage races, in Antalya and the Tour of Rwanda, but he had already made a huge impression. Then he moved to Bardiani.
Have there been other Bike Aid Team riders who went on to have professional careers?
Yes, for example Mekseb Debesay, also Eritrean, with us since 2014 and who raced for Team Dimension Data from 2016 to 2018 before returning to us and winning the African title in 2019.
Who are the team's riders who can stand out now?
If we look again at the Africans, we have Dawit Yemane and Eric Muhoza, who have shown truly remarkable performances. Dawit won the climbers' ranking in Algeria, it was really exciting to see And I hope they can grow even further in Europe. Perhaps even enough to secure a contract with a professional team.
What are your goals for this year?
We want to help and develop riders like Dawit and Eric to reach a higher level. And besides that, we also have our own sporting goals, so we want to win. We've already come close twice this year. and at the end of March we got a third place at the Volta ao Alentejo in Portugal with Pirmin Eisenbarth, a young German rider who got off to a really good start. So, yes, let's hope we can get another win.
What does the victory of one of your riders mean to you?
It's always a really special feeling within the team. We have at least 3-4 wins every year, and that brings great motivation to the other riders too. If a rider is successful, he makes others grow too.This will take the team to the next level and then we'll see what the future holds.
