Where's Tsgabu? At 7 in the morning already on the bike but this is not a supplementary pre-stage session before the Tour du Rwanda stage starting from Musanze. Tsabu Grmay, we're talking about him, now 33 years old, after retirement has plunged into the new coaching adventure, leveraging nine years in the World Tour starting from Lampre and ending with Jayco Jalula in 2023.

Yet there was a non-casual competitive appendix in 2024, right?

"Yes, I wanted to finish the Tour du Rwanda with the same World Cycling Center jersey that had offered me the opportunity to find a place at Dimension Data, which also brought me to Tuscany".

And how does the coaching mission arise?

"I am guided by the desire to facilitate the approach to cycling for young Africans, offering a growth opportunity in the world of two wheels, starting from my Ethiopia and beyond".

On the eve of the World Championship, what is the perception?

"That we are at a turning point, because the potential is enormous, we are far from the pioneering era of 10-15 years ago, certainly thanks to the training activities of the UCI centers network in Africa, like the South African one in Paarl that launched me, as well as the new structure just inaugurated in Kigali. These are fundamental nodes for spreading skills on every front, including preparation of collaborators, nutrition, and training programs. With younger athletes, you must not rush times, I continue to believe this, especially here in Africa".

Words from someone who also spent a year at the UCI Center in Aigle. The enthusiasm we see on Rwandan roads will not be a flash in the pan...

"Not at all, personally I have a special eye for the mountainous region I come from, I am working to create an Academy in my hometown of Tigray and we have just organized an event".

Inferiority complex towards marathon runners?

"I have shown that there is space even for those who want to practice cycling, a sport I have always followed, because my father and older brother already practiced it".

As an athlete, what was the most beautiful moment?

"More than the victory at the Tour de Taiwan or the African time trial titles, I can only put at the top of my personal ranking my first participation in the Tour de France, which I rode three times. There was and there is pride in representing my Country for the first time in the Grande Boucle. I raced the Giro and four editions of the Vuelta, settling in Spain, in Girona with my wife and our two children. The oldest is already passionate but no one will force him".

How was Team Amani born?

"It's a Continental team affiliated for the first year in Rwanda (initially managed by Ineos, ed.), we are ambitious and aim to branch out the activity also by consolidating work at the training center in Kenya, in Iten, a reference point for runners worldwide".

Is there a dream in the drawer with the club?

"The Team Amani programs, a word that means 'peace', are well structured. Becoming the first team from the African continent would truly be the maximum, and that's the objective we must aim for".

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