'I'm 100 percent pro the Worlds in Rwanda' – Lefevere backs African debut of cycling’s biggest one-day race

“I know I’ll be stepping on some very sensitive toes for a while, but I am one hundred per cent pro the UCI World Championships in Rwanda,” Lefevere wrote.

The debate around Rwanda 2025 is inseparable from the country’s fraught political context. The European Union has imposed sanctions on the Rwandan army over its alleged role in supporting the M23 rebels in eastern Congo, but Lefevere pointed to what he views as hypocrisy in the EU’s stance.

“The EU pays that same army millions to protect the interests of European companies, among other places – TotalEnergies, to be clear. The EU also struck a major raw materials deal with Rwanda. All that goes without saying, but if racing is in the same country, it's suddenly a major disgrace,” Lefevere argued.

It is in that spirit of perceived double standards that Lefevere framed his wider defence of Rwanda as host. “There’s a lot to say about Paul Kagame, but anyone who has been to Kigali can only be impressed by how that city functions,” he wrote. “I’m seventy years old and have worked and contributed to society my entire life. I’m allowed to give my opinion: rebuilding a completely divided and destroyed country to what it is now is only possible with an authoritarian leader. With our hundred and ten Belgian ministers of who knows what, it certainly wouldn’t have worked.”

Lefevere’s words are not those of an outsider. His teams have raced in both the Tour of Rwanda and the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon, experiences he described as “fantastic.” He points to Rwanda’s roads, hotels and organisation as evidence that the country is equipped to host an event of this magnitude.

For Lefevere, the symbolism of Rwanda 2025 extends beyond infrastructure or geopolitics. It also touches on representation. “Africa, especially Black Africa, is completely underrepresented in cycling,” he noted.

That underrepresentation had long been on his mind as CEO of the Quick-Step team. “I won’t pretend to be more noble than I am: a good African rider is priceless in terms of publicity,” he admitted. His staff scouted Henok Mulubrhan extensively, but ultimately judged him not yet ready for the WorldTour. Biniam Girmay was also firmly on the radar after he beat Remco Evenepoel as a junior, and Lefevere held detailed talks with him and his agent Alex Carrera.

He recalled how close he once came to signing Girmay. “On the one hand, it was his dream to ride for our team. On the other, he was worried about not making the classics squad,” Lefevere revealed.

That makes Girmay’s presence at the Kigali start line especially significant. “I’m glad Biniam is at the start of the World Championships. Without the most successful African rider ever, it would have been a real shame,” Lefevere concluded.

The Kigali Worlds will not silence debate. If anything, they will bring it into sharper focus. But through Lefevere’s eyes, the race represents cycling’s obligation to engage with the wider world rather than retreat from its complexities.