Joel Kyaviro takes 10th, qualifies DRC for Gravel Worlds

Joel Kyaviro’s 10th-place finish at the African Gravel Championship has secured a qualification place for the Democratic Republic of Congo at the Gravel World Championships in Australia next September. His result links the Congolese rider’s performance in Namibia to the country’s participation in the next global edition of the discipline.

Kyaviro completed the event in 10th among 140 participants. The race covered 143 kilometres, and the full contest lasted four hours and 30 minutes. His final placing was recorded in a field that competed across the complete championship distance.

The African championship was held in Windhoek, Namibia, on Saturday 22 August. It was there that Kyaviro obtained the qualification for the DRC, making the Namibian race the event through which the country earned its place at the world championships.

The Gravel World Championships will be staged in Australia in September. Kyaviro’s 10th position therefore carries a national consequence beyond the African ranking: it puts the Democratic Republic of Congo among the qualified countries for the next world championship.