In our latest podcast, we sat down with Alexandre Mayer, the leading male cyclist from the island of Mauritius.

The 28-year-old rider is in his second year at the Pro Continental level with the Burgos Burpellet BH team, alongside Merhawi Kudus. Alex took the 'Best African' jersey at the 2.2 Tour du Benin and when we spoke he was next heading to Azerbaijan for the 2.1 Baku Khankendi Cycling Race there (he will be racing stage three there when this podcast is published).

He is always remarkably honest and open, and talks passionately about his recent marriage to fellow Mauritian cyclist Lucie de Marigny-Lagesse - who went pro in 2026 with the WCC Team - and how they are sharing their journey together. We hope you enjoy this discussion!

In this episode, Kim and Jeremy on our team sat down with Salami Avocetien of the Benin Cycling Federation. At just 21 years old, he speaks French, English, four local languages, has his UCI Level 2 Coaching Qualification (Level 3 will be achieved in one month), made his debut as a DS (Directeur Sportif) at Tour du Benin - accompanied by our CEO Kimberly Coats - for the Benin National Team , heads to the UCI this summer for a 3-month internship, and will complete a Masters degree as well. He is a truly remarkable young man.

With Benin seeing its first rider get a professional contract in 2026 (Georgette Vignonfodo - WCC Women's Team), Salami might be the next biggest thing to come out of cycling in Benin, and across West Africa.

The future for this young man is so bright in our sport. Have a listen to his story...

Two week's ago we featured the father-son Uwimana cycling dynasty in Rwanda, and we now move our focus 3000km to Dire Dawa in eastern Ethiopia, home of the famous Rogora cycling family!

On this edition of the Africa Rising Cycling Podcast, we talked to 22-year-old Kiya Rogora, a professional cyclist who has already raced around the world for pro teams and for Ethiopia.

Kiya recently launched an exciting new men's road racing team in Ethiopia: JR Pro Cycling. The name brings to life his father's name - Jemal Rogora - an Olympian and one of Ethiopia's most famous cyclists.

Dire Dawa has a long history of cycling prowess, but has recently been somewhat overshadowed by the sheer volume of riders coming from the Tigray region in the north of the country. JR Pro Cycling aims to bring back the pride in Dire Dawa, and maybe become Ethiopia's first ever men's professional UCI team.

Kiya talks through his career, his heroes, the success of the team so far, the challenges, and the hunt for sponsors to join them in the journey. We hope you enjoy!