Mereja Forum

[Cigar]

Say thank you to the Eritrean cyclists for shining your black as*ses in the international sports arenas.


https://www.facebook.com/10000264610131 ... 841552843/

[quindibu]

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[Zmeselo]

መን ከም ኤርትራውያን ደገፍቲ???




Intermarche- the team he rides for.




His resumé, thusfar:












@cyclingmedia_ag



Just the start!

[Zmeselo]

EmbassyMedia - ዘተ ብሽክሌታ ኤርትራ ኣብ ፈስቲቫል ማንችስተር - 'AFRICA Cycling PowerHouse'

[Zmeselo]

Like a hot knife, through bùtter!




You can hear "the shock", in the commentator's voice.

[Jaegol]

Pride of Africa… first African to win

[Sabur]

"How far back he was ? How he got out of this Box?

Look at the strength from The Eritrean... look at the speed he has"

[Fed_Up]

Simply amazing!!

Congrats Deki Ereye!

[Zmeselo]

LEUVEN, BELGIUM - SEPTEMBER 24: Silver medalist Biniam Girmay of Eritrea celebrates winning during the medal ceremony after the 94th UCI Road World Championships 2021 - Men U23 Road Race a 160,9km race from Antwerp to Leuven / #flanders2021 / on September 24, 2021 in Leuven, Belgium. (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images)

ROAD
History-maker: Biniam Ghirmay scores first road worlds medal for Eritrea

The 21-year-old Eritrean hopes that his silver medal in the U23 men's road race will turn to gold in years to come.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

SADHBH O'SHEA

https://www.velonews.com/news/road/hist ... um=twitter



Biniam Ghirmay, remember that name.

The 21-year-old emerged from the swirling chaos of the bunch in the final meters of Friday’s U23 men’s road race at the world championships https://www.velonews.com/tag/uci-road-w ... pionships/ to make history.

Scything his way through rider after rider, finally dropping Olev Kooij (Netherlands) shortly before the line, he dashed to the silver medal just behind Italy’s Filippo Baroncini, and became the first rider from Eritrea to win a road world championship medal.

For me, for my nation, and also for Africans, it means a lot to have this medal. I’m really proud of my nation,

Ghirmay said in his post-race press conference in Leuven.

I have to say congratulations to all of Eritrea and all Africans.

_________________________

Also read: Filippo Baroncini wins crash-riddled U23 road race as Eritrea hits historic podium https://www.velonews.com/news/road/fili ... road-race/

_________________________

My family said to me, for sure you can take a medal,

he said.

I say thank you to my family who have supported me, they give me really good motivation every single day.

When I started the sprint, I was a bit nervous, but I was just thinking of getting one of the medals. I did it, so I’m happy with my place.

Eritrean cyclists have been on the up and up within the European peloton since Daniel Teklehaimanot https://velonews.com/tag/Daniel-Teklehaimanot became the first cyclist from the country to compete at the Olympic Games and ride a grand tour in 2012.

There are now four riders from the African country riding at WorldTour level — a small number compared to many of the European nations, but no mean feat given the logistical challenges many from the African continent face.

Behind these four is a growing number of promising talents rising through the ranks, and Ghirmay doesn’t want his result to be an anomaly but a sign of what’s to come.

I hope we can do even better than this, maybe after this second in the next few years it will be the rainbow jersey,

Ghirmay said.

I think the future is bright for Eritrean riders. We have really good potential and a good future. It is not just in the last years but for a long time.

We are getting more experience and we are progressing physically and mentally every day and we keep working and fighting to be at WorldTour level,

he said.

This has been happening for a long time and I am happy to see myself in this group. There is a really good future over the next years.

Becoming a classics man

Ghirmay picked up cycling as a pre-teen, initially racing on the mountain bike before discovering his talents on the road.

He made his name as a future cycling star when he took a clean sweep of the African national championships in 2018. After helping his country to the team time trial relay, he romped to the individual TT title by almost a minute and then won the road race title from a two-up sprint.

I am from the capital Asmara. It is the cycling zone in Eritrea and every Sunday there is a race,

Ghirmay said.

I started when I was 12 years old with a school of racing and then I rode mountain bike and also I started road racing when I was 15 years old.

I came to Europe in 2018 with the UCI [World Cycling Center]. After I won the African continental championships, they invited me to race internationally. I did a lot of races with them and gained a lot of experience. It means a lot for me because I went to Europe in 2018, every year and every step, and every new experience, I learned a lot and it worked well today.

Ghirmay is the newest of the Eritrean WorldTour group after signing for the Belgian Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert last month. He started his tenure at the team with eighth place in the opening stage of the Tour of Poland.

His first win for them came soon afterward at the Classic Grand Besançon Doubs after he made it into a group of attackers that included Thibaut Pinot and Nairo Quintana.

Most Eritrean riders that have turned professional have been strong climbers — little surprise given the country’s capital is over 2,300m above sea level — but Ghirmay is from a different mold.

His silver medal in Flanders is proof of his talents as a sprinter and he wants to develop that talent as well as become a good classics rider, like one of his favorite riders, Peter Sagan.

For now, I am really looking forward to the classics races and some hilly races,

he said.

I think my sprint is the best capacity I have, so I am working on becoming faster in the bunch sprints and the small uphills.

_______________





Biniam Girmay: Worlds silver is for Eritrea and for Africa

By Patrick Fletcher about 8 hours ago

https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/biniam ... or-africa/

Eritrean makes history with country's first Worlds medal


Silver medalist Biniam Girmay of Eritrea during the medal ceremony after the 94th UCI Road World Championships 2021 Men U23 Road Race (Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

Biniam Girmay https://www.cyclingnews.com/riders/biniam-girmay-hailu/ hailed a landmark moment for Eritrea and all of Africa after winning the silver medal in the U23 men's road race at the UCI Road World Championships. https://www.cyclingnews.com/races/uci-r ... hips-2021/

The rising star burst clear of a reduced bunch to place second in Leuven, just a couple of seconds after solo winner Filippo Baroncini. https://www.cyclingnews.com/races/uci-r ... e/results/ In doing so, he made history, becoming the first Eritrean and the first black African to win a medal at the Road World Championships.

For me, for my nation, also for Africa, this means a lot,

Girmay said as his section of the post-race press conference outlasted that of the world champion to his left.

I'm really happy. I'm really proud of my nation, so I say congrats to all Eritreans and also to all Africans.

Girmay nodded his head sharply as he crossed the line, which at first looked like a show of frustration. He had been the fastest in the reduced bunch, only thwarted by a solo attacker, but it soon became clear that there wasn't a hint of disappointment.

He sank to the tarmac and was mobbed by his teammates and staff, and could no doubt hear - if not see - the flag-laden Eritrean fans in Leuven.

Yesterday I called my family, and they told me to remember when I was a kid,

he revealed.

My father said to me 'hopefully you will become one of the biggest riders in all the world, you will be world champion'. So I was on the phone to my father and my whole family, and they said 'for sure you can do it and take a medal'.

I say thank you for all my family. They supported me. They give me really good motivation, every single day. When I was starting my sprint, I was a bit nervous but I was also thinking just to get one of the medals. Not to win - just to finish top three and I did it. I am happy with my place.

explaining his roots.

Every Sunday there's a race, and all the people who like cycling give you a lot of advice. I started when I was 12 years old, at school. I rode mountain bike but then I also started road racing when I was 15.

Girmay's big break was an invite to the UCI's World Cycling Centre, to which he says he owes a big debt of gratitude. The WCC is an initiative of the sport's governing body to develop riders from backgrounds that may ordinarily prevent them from reaching the pro ranks, housing them in Switzerland and offering structured training and access to races.

After I won the African Continental Championships - in the TT and the road race - the UCI invited me, so I joined them in 2018 and stayed until the end of 2019. It was really important - one of the most important things,

Girmay said.

I raced a lot of races with them and gained a lot of good experience. When you're young, you come to Europe and you see the peloton - big peloton - and a lot of tactics. Mentally and physically, I grew at the World Cycling Centre.

It means a lot to me because I went to Europe in 2018 and every year, with every step, every new experience, I learn a lot. It has worked today.

Girmay then signed his first professional contract with the French Delko team for 2020, and he immediately made his mark, winning two stages of the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon. He went on to finish runner-up behind Giulio Ciccone at Trofeo Laigueglia, then to Loic Vliegen at Tour du Doubs, as well as picking up four podiums at the Tour du Rwanda and fourth at the Giro della Toscana.

Interest rocketed, WorldTour teams started circling, and, as Delko found themselves in financial and administrative trouble this year, a mid-season transfer to WorldTour outfit Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux was organised for the start of August. He quickly set about winning the GP Besançon Doubs - his first professional victory on European soil.

When I joined this team I was super happy. I think it's a good team. It's not only a team but a family,

he said.

I also say thank you to them for giving me the opportunity and supporting me the past few months. I joined halfway through the season but they gave me the chance immediately to sprint for the win.

Girmay signed a long-term deal with the Belgian team and recently relocated to Lucca, Italy, where there's a sizeable contingent of Eritrean riders. He signed through 2024 - a sign of how highly rated he is - in which time he hopes to hone his skills as a versatile sprinter and start winning bigger and bigger races.

For now, I'm really looking at the Classics, also some hilly races with a sprint,

he said.

This is my best capacity so I'm working for this to be faster in the bunch sprints and on the small uphills. I also want to show the next few years that I can be one of the big riders.

When I was little, I liked sprinters. I wouldn't say he's my hero, but I like Peter Sagan, not only for his cycling but also outside of cycling. He's really funny and easy-going.

The future appears very bright indeed for Girmay but he is also aware of the potential impact of his silver medal not just in the next few years, or even the rest of his career, but for decades and generations to come.

In Eritrea our future is bright,

he said.

We have really good potential. It's not just from the last years, it's longer.

We will get more experience, and progress every day mentally and physically. There is a really good future, I think.

[Jaegol]

Viva Binny the pride of Africa