Officials, Cyclists Hail 2025 Tour D' Afrique
Team Nigeria cyclists and officials of FT Cycle Care, organisers of Tour D’Afrique 2025 cycling event (Nigerian to Ghana) are back in the country.
The Tour D’Afrique was part of celebrations of the 50th anniversary of ECOWAS and also part of plans to revive the ECOWAS Cycling Tour.
Chairman, FT Cycle Care Cycling Club, Femi Thomas, who doubles as the helmsman of Ogun State Cycling Association, stressed that the tour emphasises the unity on the African continent, most especially in the West African Sub- region
Thomas, a board member of the Cycling Federation of Nigeria and an ex- cyclist states that the Ultimate West African Cycling Adventure afforded the cyclists the opportunity to Explore vibrant cities;
– Engage with local communities and cyclists; and
– Foster international friendships and cooperation.
” The experience was awesome because each and everyone of the cyclists, when they crossed the boarder and started seeing different things, they start to believe that there could be a better Nigeria if we’re able to do the right thing.
“They also saw the professionalism out there which make them believe that if these people can do things in a perfect way, we too can do better. So, they were able to adapt to new sense of professionalism, new ability to explore , to diversify and also see things beyond their locality.
On the technical aspect of the tour, he noted that the team covered 220 kilometers on the first day, did 180 kilometer on the second day and 95 kilometers on the third day while on their way back, they rode 188 kilometer, did 140 kilometer on the sixth day and 135 kilometer on the final day.
“You can see that we covered a lot of distance within a short period of time but we were able to enjoy it. There were different terrain, different hills, different weather and environment which made us become more familiar with everything around us”, he stressed.
He appealed to companies and businesses to take advange of the enomous benefits accrued to the tour to grow their products and services along the West African route.
Logistics Manager, FT Cycle Care, Iyanoluwa Abidoye , explained that the tour which is it’s 6th edition is organized annually to encourage cyclists to sharpen their skills in the sport and promote a healthy lifestyle.
A total of 17 cyclists took part in the weeklong event which took them to Benin Republic, Togo and Ghana.
The event terminated at the liaison office of ECOWAS in Lagos where a top official of the sub- regional body received and presented the team with medals as an award and recognition for their achievement.
The Tour du Africa saw the cyclists cover a distance of 1000 kilometers