KENYA: CYCLE RACING - Kenyan trainer of the young Chris Froome is hoping for a Tour de France victory

Record ID: 362660

  • Title: KENYA: CYCLE RACING - Kenyan trainer of the young Chris Froome is hoping for a Tour de France victory
  • Date: 20th July 2013
  • Summary: KIKUYU, NEAR NAIROBI, KENYA (JULY 18, 2013) (REUTERS) KENYAN CYCLISTS INCLUDING DAVID KINJAH, CHRIS FROOME'S FORMER TRAINER, (FULL SUIT/RED GLOVES), RIDING ON TRACK DAVID KINJAH LEADS RIDERS THROUGH FOREST RIDERS TAKING A BREAK DAVID KINJAH GIVING INSTRUCTIONS TO RIDERS CYCLING CAMP RENTAL HOUSES RIDERS OUTSIDE HOUSES (SOUNDBITE) (English) DAVID KINJAH, FROOME'S FRIE
  • Embargoed: 4th August 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: General,Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA4LA48D8DPJZFNQN4H1PTEVF0E
  • Story Text: As Chris Froome races for a final day in France's mountains before the trip to Paris, one man in a far away Kenyan village hopes that a win for the boy he introduced to road cycling can transform the sport's popularity in Kenya.
    David Kinjah, Froome's former mentor, has been following the progress of Kenyan-born Froome, who is the overall Tour de France race leader as he nears the end of the Tour. Kinjah continues to train young Kenyan cyclists and hopes they too can achieve international success.
    "It makes me proud," he said in the Kikuyu township near Nairobi on Thursday (July 18).
    "It makes lots of people and friends who knew him when he was young, you know people who never thought of him as a potential professional cyclist, you know, they look back at the days and how humble and easy and how playful he was."
    Froome competes as a Briton, he has a British passport, but he was born in Kenya and educated in South Africa.
    In the east African country best known for its champion runners, cycling has faced an uphill struggle to compete with athletics and soccer, sports which are not only more popular but also much more affordable.
    But Froome has fans here, and his progress towards what could be a first Tour de France title will be an inspiration to many who look up to him.
    "You know it just humbles me," said 41-year-old Kinjah. "It is very encouraging and for the work we do here with the young boys and you know, the underprivileged young people from the villages, teaching them about cycling. This brings a lot of hope to them, they get to believe in it and they can get to believe in what they doing and get to believe in themselves."
    Some of the challenges faced by Kinjah's Safari Simbaz team, made up of teenage boys and young men from nearby villages, also frustrated young Froome when he first had the opportunity to ride with Kinjah.
    Froome had to borrow a road bike from a sympathetic teacher as his mother could not afford a new one.
    Froome, now aged 28, fell in love with cycling in Kinjah's Mai-I-Hii village, located in the lush green hills of the Kikuyu township north of Nairobi.
    In media interviews, the Olympic bronze medallist has described Kinjah as a "role model" and an inspiration.
    Kinjah, who is Kenya's top cyclist, says Froome was a "thin", shy but determined boy.
    Froome moved to South Africa to study, but kept coming back to Kenya during school breaks.
    "He used to come and go but when the schools had closed he would spend many nights here with us. This was his home as well and we also went up country to Githunguri at my parents' (place) and we would camp there for weeks and we did more hills training there, he loved that," Kinjah said.
    Froome, who won a medal for Kenya in the All Africa Games in 2007, switched his allegiance to Britain in 2008. Kinja said Froome had no support from the Kenya Cycling Federation.
    As Froome reaches the end of the Tour De France mountain stages, the young riders in Kinjah's house watch intently, aware that someone who spent years in this same room could win the world's most prestigious road race.
    "We shall be watching the tour all of us there with friends and fans, and we shall be cheering and if God wishes and he finishes in the yellow jersey, and he is working very hard to do that, then the Sunday after we are going to have a goat eating party. We are going to sacrifice a goat, you know the African way, we are going to slaughter a goat and we are going to have a party," said Kinjah.
    Kinjah and Froome have stayed close, even though Froome's family link to Kenya was severed when his mother died in 2008. Only last month, Froome sent back his Team Sky kit for Kinjah to sell at auction to raise funds.
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