Coastal Classic winners to pocket Sh10 million ahead of Nyerere Tour
Vodacom Tanzania Director of External Affairs and Regulatory, Zuweina Farah, speaks during the unveiling of partners for the Nyerere Cycling Tour, scheduled to start on October 5. Others pictured are Stanbic Bank Tanzania Sustainability Manager Annette Nkini (third right), BYD Head of Marketing and Sales Samwel Msonsa (second right), and the tour’s founder, Gabriel Landa (far right). Also pictured is Afroil Director Mohamed Al Jabry, standing behind Farah. PHOTO | COURTESY
Dar es Salaam. The winner of this year’s Vodacom Coastal Classic cycling race will pocket Sh10 million in both the men’s and women’s categories as organisers raise the stakes ahead of the Nyerere Cycling Tour.
The 109-kilometre elite road race, scheduled for October 4, will start at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam and finish in Bagamoyo, with more than 147 cyclists expected to compete, including 69 Tanzanians, 27 of them women.
Second-placed cyclists in both categories will receive Sh7 million each, while third-place finishers will take home Sh5 million apiece, adding a significant financial incentive to the competition.
The prizes were announced by Vodacom Tanzania PLC Director of External Affairs and Regulatory, Zuweina Farah, during the unveiling of partners supporting this year’s Nyerere Cycling Tour, which will run from October 5 to 14 and finish in Butiama, Mara Region.
Vodacom Tanzania is the title partner, while the Vodacom Tanzania Foundation and Stanbic Bank are supporting the tour’s social responsibility activities.
Other partners include BYD, Coca-Cola, Huawei, Afroil and ABC Bicycles, which are supporting areas including mobility, hydration, technology, fuel, transport and bicycle services. arah said the Coastal Classic is designed to strengthen cycling in Tanzania while creating a platform for identifying and developing new talent.
“The Vodacom Coastal Classic is part of the Nyerere Cycling Tour, whose main objective is to support communities through three important areas: education, health and the environment,” she said.
She added that the Coastal Classic will provide a competitive opening to the wider cycling programme, which is expected to attract more than 210 cyclists for the main 1,415-kilometre journey from Bagamoyo to Butiama.
The Nyerere Cycling Tour, formerly known as the Twende Butiama Cycling Tour, will pass through 10 regions, including Pwani, Tanga, Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Manyara, Singida, Tabora, Mwanza and Mara, before ending at Mwalimu Julius Nyerere’s home and burial site in Butiama.
According to Farah, cyclists will pass through Korogwe, Same, Arusha, Babati, Singida, Nzega, Mwanza and Bunda, with rest days planned in Arusha and Mwanza.
The tour will also support community projects along the route. Under the education component, organisers will support construction of four classrooms, refurbishment of 15 classrooms, distribution of 1,000 desks to nine schools and construction of 50 pit latrines at five schools.
The environmental programme will see 1,100 trees planted at 11 supported schools, while community activities will focus on road safety, financial literacy and fraud awareness. Nyerere Cycling Tour founder Gabriel Landa said organisers expect participation to exceed 200 cyclists.
“We expect more than 200 cyclists to participate this year. The growth of the tour shows that people are increasingly embracing cycling while also supporting the causes it promotes, particularly education, health and environmental conservation,” said Landa.
Stanbic Bank Sustainability Manager Annette Nkini said the bank’s involvement goes beyond sport and focuses on addressing challenges affecting communities.
Stanbic Bank Tanzania has committed Sh300 million to support the tour’s social impact activities.
