The State of Eritrea is a country located in the northeast of the African continent, coastal, adjoining Sudan and Ethiopia. A country with just over 7 million inhabitants, among whom Biniam Girmay stands out.
He was born in Asmara, the capital of Eritrea, a city of just over 600,000 inhabitants, located 2,300 meters above sea level. Biniam is 22 years old, he is a professional cyclist and today he won the tenth stage of the Giro d’Italia.
Athletes of color are leaders in various disciplines, such as track, marathon, soccer and American football, however, they have not run with the same fortune and success in cycling. Their low participation in this sport, some specialists maintain, is due to socioeconomic and cultural causes, which have kept natives of African countries away from cycling.
It was not until 2011 that a cyclist of color participated in the Tour de France. For the year 2012, the Tour of Spain also received its first black competitor. Today we are happy because Girmay has managed to make history as the first black cyclist to win a stage of the Giro d’Italia.
That Biniam has triumphed in Italy is an extraordinary and emblematic event in keeping with the history of the land where he was born. Eritrea was the first Italian colony in Africa, and today one of its inhabitants conquers the tenth stage of the Giro.
The Italians in Eritrea were the ones who introduced and spread the taste for cycling among its inhabitants. As a child, Biniam preferred soccer, but the influence of his brother and his father made him participate in cycling. The latter, a carpenter by trade, with great effort gave him his first bicycle.
His talent, discipline and perseverance led him to train in Europe, which opened up a series of opportunities that he did not miss. Girmay’s story is just beginning and it will surely give a lot to talk about in world cycling.
How many success stories are we deprived of due to lack of adequate conditions? That child, son of a carpenter who had them, has made history. What happiness. The unfortunate part of the story: the cork of the celebration hit him in the eye and sent him to the hospital in an emergency; Let’s hope it’s not serious.