Adrien Niyonshuti is a Rwandan former professional bicycle racer, who rode professionally for from 2009 to 2017. He now works as a directeur sportif for UCI Continental team. Although he survived, six of Niyonshuti's brothers were killed in the Rwandan genocide of 1994. Niyonshuti began riding a bicycle given to him by his uncle as a teenager, when he came to the attention of former professional cyclist Jacques Boyer in 2006 during the first Wooden Bike Classic.
Career
Born in Eastern Province, Rwanda, Niyonshuti began amateur cycling at the age of sixteen. In 2006, he came to the attention of a former professional cyclist, Jacques Boyer. The first American cyclist to compete in the Tour de France, Boyer was working in Rwanda on a project to import cargo bicycles for coffee farmers. Boyer also assumed the role of coach for the Rwandan national cycling team, and recruited Niyonshuti to race. Niyonshuti had good initial results in local races such as the Tour of Rwanda, in which he finished in the top ten five years in a row and won in 2006 and 2008. In 2008, Niyonshuti attended the Africa Continental Centre Training Camp in South Africa, where he was offered a contract by Douglas Ryder, the directeur sportif of UCI Continental Team. He started his first UCI European road race in August 2009 with his participation in the Tour of Ireland, becoming the first Rwandan cyclist to ride in the European professional peloton. Niyonshuti qualified to represent Rwanda in the cross-country mountain bike race during the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. He was also Rwanda's flagbearer at the opening ceremony. Niyonshuti competed for Rwanda again at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He did not finish the men's road race. He was the flagbearer for Rwanda again during the opening ceremony. In 2017, he was aiming to make his Grand Tour debut.
After the 2012 London Olympic Games Niyonshuti immediately felt he wanted to offer the chance for young people in his country to experience the power of cycling, to instill hope and to pass on its positive values to future generations. The Adrien Niyonshuti Cycling Academy idea was born and the first location chosen was his home town of Rwamagana. Along with support from the Rwandan Cycling Federation, Team Rwanda and the Rising from Ashes Foundation the academy was officially launched in the August 2013. The initial 2014 program will focus on building the Academy in Rwamagana with a view to opening up two new Rwandan centres in 2015. The presence of a professional team documenting and continuously assessing performance via tangible results the Academy will have gained the tools and experience to expand outside the borders of Rwanda.
