"but Rwanda instead finds itself the backdrop to a sport mired in infighting and controversy. The Vuelta a Espana ended on Sunday after three weeks of racing characterised by mass pro-Palestinian demonstrations against the presence of the Israel-Premier Tech team. The denouement of all that chaos for race winner Jonas Vingegaard, runner-up Joao Almeida and third-placed finisher Tom Pidcock was cheap champagne and a makeshift podium in a hotel car park."
"The heated debate over sportswashing in cycling that spilled over into violent protest in Spain has now moved from Madrid to Kigali, where Rwanda's president, Paul Kagame, has long been criticised for what human rights groups describe as an authoritarian and undemocratic regime. However, David Lappartient, the UCI president, maintains that staging the sport's blue riband championships in Rwanda, more than 30 years after the 1994 genocide, is an inspirational message of hope."
"Since announcing Rwanda as host for the 2025 world championships, Lappartient has been dismissive of those criticising Kagame's regime. In all the countries in the world, you can find some points where they can be better, but when I see where Rwanda was, and where it is now, it's great, Lappartient said. We are always careful about human rights because it's in our DNA as an international federation to keep in mind the values of the Olympic movement, of peace, respect and human rights."
Rwanda's hosting of the road world championships coincides with turmoil in cycling, including mass pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the Vuelta a España that targeted the Israel-Premier Tech team. The Vuelta concluded with podium celebrations reduced to cheap champagne in a hotel car park after weeks of protest. Human rights organisations accuse Rwanda's government of enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, excessive use of force, unfair trials and restrictions on freedom of expression. UCI president David Lappartient defends holding the championships in Rwanda as an inspirational sign of progress and downplays criticism of the country's record. The debate over sportswashing has shifted to Kigali and raises the prospect of team boycotts.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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