Henok Mulubrhan from Eritrea has been named the best African cyclist of 2023. Over the past three years, the title had gone to his teammate, who now finished in second place, Biniam Girmay.
Mulubrhan, 24 years old, won two stage races last year: the Tour du Rwanda in February and the Tour of Qinghai Lake in July. He also claimed victory in two stages of the Tour du Rwanda and one stage in the Chinese Tour. Additionally, he became the African road champion and finished third in the Giro dell’Appennino.
In 2023, Mulubrhan rode for Green Project-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè, but from the upcoming year, he will compete for the Astana Qazaqstan Team. He has signed a two-year contract with the Kazakh team.
Girmay finished second this year in the election for the best African cyclist of the year, after three consecutive victories. The Eritrean from Intermarché-Circus-Wanty couldn’t replicate his stellar 2022 season in 2023, although he secured two notable victories. Early in the season, he defeated Olav Kooij in the opening stage of the Tour de Valencia, and in June, he was the fastest in the second stage of the Tour de Suisse, beating Arnaud Démare and Wout Van Aert. In the Tour de France, he finished third in the stage in Bordeaux.
