In a nail-biting finish, Joe Blackmore won the sixth stage of the Tour of Rwanda 2024. The young Briton from the Israel-Premier Tech development team caught up to Colombian Jonathan Restrepo (Polti-Kometa) in the final meters of Mont Kigali and snatched the win.
With the victory Blackmore, active in cyclo-cross and mountain biking, became the new leader of the African race. Jonathan Restrepo (Polti-Kometa) made the podium and Germán Darío Gómez (Polti-Kometa) climbed to the top 5.
The mountainous day with arrival at Mont Kigali, covered 94 kilometers. From the start in the city of Muzanze there were multiple attacks, but the peloton did not give space to the escapees. Halfway through the stage, Chris Froome (Israel-Premier Tech) tried, but the 36th in the general classification also failed to escape.
Finally, a reduced peloton headed for the final climb, not to be confused with the steep Kigali Wall scheduled for Sunday. This climb was no easy task and gave the climbers a chance to show their skills.
There the two Colombian beetles were very active, and it was the ‘Pácora’ Restrepo who went for the victory, however, in the last 25 meters came from behind the British Joe Blackmore and passed him. The number three of the stage, the Kazakh Ilkhan Dostiyev (Astana Qazaqstan Development Team), climbed to second place in the general classification.
This Saturday the prestigious African race continues with another leg-breaking stage between Rukomo and Kayonza, which will be 163.3 kilometers long and will feature a mountain pass and a small steep climb finish.
Results Stage 6 | Muzanze – Mont Kigali (93,3 km)
| 1 | Joseph Blackmore | Israel – Premier Tech | 2:12:44 |
| 2 | Jhonatan Restrepo | Team Polti Kometa | ,, |
| 3 | Ilkhan Dostiyev | Astana Qazaqstan Development Team | 0:05 |
| 4 | Nahom Zerai | Eritrea | 0:08 |
| 5 | Germán Darío Gómez | Team Polti Kometa | 0:18 |
Ranking General Individual
| 1 | Joseph Blackmore | Israel – Premier Tech | 12:00:25 |
| 2 | Ilkhan Dostiyev | Astana Qazaqstan Development Team | 0:11 |
| 3 | Jhonatan Restrepo | Team Polti Kometa | 0:13 |
| 4 | William Junior Lecerf | Soudal – Quick-Step Devo Team | 0:55 |
| 5 | Germán Darío Gómez | Team Polti Kometa | 1:00 |
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclístico