If there could be any doubt about the difficulties facing African riders attempting to build a career in the European-based world of professional cycling, the latest Road World Championships in Kigali, when the world's riders had to do the reverse, should have proven a reminder.
Even with a rainbow jersey at stake, some nations, such as Denmark, sent a limited number of riders citing the high costs as an issue – though that is just one of the concerns for African riders trying to make the trip in the opposite direction, as even if they overcome all other obstacles, visas can also create another roadblock. Now, however, Team Africa Rising have put in place another way to try and provide opportunity despite the at times insurmountable challenge of racing internationally.
The COVID-19 pandemic propelled the growth of virtual racing across the world and Africa was no exception, with Team Africa Rising saying it had worked with other early adopters, including the Lunsar Cycling Team in Sierra Leone and the National Cycling Federation of Benin plus early in 2025, despite conflict in the area, they helped the Goma Cycling Club in DR Congo establish its first online training capability.
The non-profit organisation, which in 2007 launched Team Rwanda and has since broadened its reach to support the development of cyclists in many other nations across the continent, said it was also evident that riders who performed well for Africa at the World Championships and the most recent African Continental Championships were frequent Zwift users. That led to discussions before and during the World Championships aimed at expanding the use of e-training and virtual racing as a legacy project.
“Virtual training and racing have led to the democratisation of the sport on the African continent," said Team Africa Rising CEO Kimberly Coats. "African cyclists can assess their strength and performance against each other and the best in the world. Our goal is to have riders training and racing in all 54 countries on the continent and to launch the first-ever African e-sport Continental Championships.”
Team Africa Rising said the online elements of the clubs using Zwift, as well as several more centres in the pipeline, will be grouped as Virtual Performance Centres (VPC's). The non-profit group said before the end of the year it would be setting up the centres in Algeria, Zambia and Ghana as well as there being a major equipment refresh in Uganda.
"TAR will continue to establish more VPCs into the new year with the aim of seeing over 1,000 young male and female cyclists getting online by the time of the next UCI World Championships in September 2026," said the statement from Team Africa Rising.
Zwift is providing the e-trainers and licensees for the project.
“At Zwift, we believe the power of cycling should be accessible to everyone, everywhere," said Kate Veronneau, the Director of Women’s Strategy at Zwift. "Supporting Team Africa Rising reflects our commitment to growing the sport globally and opening doors for emerging talent."
