'I just kept on fighting until they burned me out in the legs' - Ugandan cycling’s great hope on his World Championships debut
Kamya Richard of Masaka Cycling Club opens up on his journey from racing in Kampala to the Glasgow Worlds
Sometimes in sport, the best lessons don’t come from finishing on the top step of the podium, but from finding yourself the underdog: there in the heat of competition but not quite having enough to overcome your rivals and revel in the glory of a medal winning ride.
The junior ranks of cycling are no exception, something 18-year-old Ugandan Kamya Richard found out during his World Championship debut in Glasgow last weekend.
Richard, who rides in Uganda for the Masaka cycling club, travelled to Glasgow to make his first Worlds appearance with one of Masaka's patrons Ross Burrage.
After missing an early move that split the main field in the race, Richard was pulled from the action having lost time on the leaders, but as he tells Cycling Weekly, he now knows what he needs to do in order to follow in the footsteps of African WorldTour stars like Eritrea’s Biniam Girmay in the years ahead.
"Even just starting out riding in the bunch was just very amazing for me," he told Cycling Weekly.
"Every rider was there fighting for position and for me, I just ended up looking on and going to the back. I didn't get a chance to get in front of the peloton as it was very, very difficult for me. The other guys were just so much faster," he said, adding that the experience was "fantastic" and one which he "learned so much" from.
“Most of my life back in Uganda, I thought that I was the best junior rider, but last Saturday I soon realised who the best juniors are in the world.”
“In Uganda when we've been watching the Tour de France, we think 'ahhh we can go with those guys. They are not much better than us,' but here only the juniors go and show me what I'm missing,” he adds with the biggest smile in Scotland, clearly full of gratitude for just having the chance to test himself against his peers.
A surprise phone call
Prior to travelling to the championships, Richard had never left Uganda before; recalling the moment he found out he’d been selected for competition, he told Cycling Weekly: “One day I was home from training and I was just sitting on my bed,” he explains. “Chairman Mirro [Masaka cycling club chairperson and founder] called me. He said 'hey Richard', I said 'yes chairman' and he said 'Richard, you've been selected for the Scotland World Championships' I just couldn't believe it and started crying. I got up, thanked God and said ‘Mum, I'm going to Scotland!' It was just unbelievable.”
Before Richard leaves Scotland, he’ll ride Friday’s men’s junior time trial in Stirling and have the opportunity to test himself at the highest level once more.
He explains that without the influence of Burrage, Sam Mutton - who has been instrumental in introducing Masaka's riders to the Zwift platform - and his coach Owen Fidler, his experiences at the Worlds would never have been possible.
“Before the road race, Ross [Burrage] told me that whenever they leave you, just keep on fighting,” he says. “I listened and just kept on fighting until they burned me out in the legs. It just showed me that everything that the coaches were telling me at home, it was very true."
Back at home, Richard regularly races in the Ugandan capital Kampala, where the team is rapidly building a reputation as being one of the best in the region - thanks, according to Richard, to the expert guidance of Fidler.
“The races we're used to riding in Kampala can be very tough on us,” he says. “But then we got Coach Owen, he taught us how to ride in a race, the tactics that you need and then we started winning in Uganda.
"We always say that if you didn't get the first position at least try to have two riders on the podium. Now our team is very very strong. Even in Kampala they're now saying our team is very organised and very strong and one of the best.
“When I heard I was coming to these worlds, I went straight to Coach Owen and said 'Coach Owen, I need to work on myself. Can you help me to get to the level of these guys, because I'm not anywhere,'" he adds. “But now after this I'm ready and I have learned so much.
“Everything Coach Owen told me, now, I've seen it with my own eyes and I now know how to get better and ready for next time." We'll be watching.
A post shared by Masaka Cycling Club Foundation 🧡 (@masakacyclingclub)
A photo posted by on
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Tom has been writing for Cycling Weekly since 2022 and his news stories, rider interviews and features appear both online and in the magazine.
Since joining the team, he has reported from some of professional cycling's biggest races and events including the Tour de France and the World Championships in Glasgow. He has also covered major races elsewhere across the world. As well as on the ground reporting, Tom writes race reports from the men's and women's WorldTour and focuses on coverage of UK domestic cycling.
-
I'm about to turn 40 - how can I keep riding fast?
Approaching a landmark birthday, Charlie Graham-Dixon explores how ageing affects cycling performance and what can be done to stay ahead of the curve
By Charlie Graham-Dixon Published
-
Life Time Grand Prix to have fewer riders and wild cards in 2025
The flagship US gravel series has confirmed the six races that will be a part of the competition next year
By Adam Becket Published
-
Swiss junior rider Muriel Furrer dies after crash at World Championships
18-year-old crashed during women's junior road race and was taken to hospital by air ambulance
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Remco Evenepoel puts transfer speculation to bed ahead of World Championships road race
'I'll stay where I am' says Double Olympic champion as he confirms he will remain at Soudal Quick-Step next season
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
UCI Road World Championships 2024 - road race contenders
Your guide to the favourites for the road races at the 2024 Zürich Road and Para-cycling Worlds
By Stephen Puddicombe Last updated
-
'I have to pinch myself and figure out if it's real or not, especially after all the s**t in the past': Stevie Williams ahead of World Championships debut
Welshman looking to end best ever year on a high in Zurich after Tour down Under, Flèche Wallonne and Tour of Britain Men victories
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
UCI Road World Championships 2024 - time trial contenders
Your guide to the favourites for the time trials at the 2024 Zürich Road and Para-cycling Worlds
By Adam Becket Published
-
Pogačar mania takes hold in Canada with 2026 Montréal World Championships on the horizon
Organiser of GP Québec and Montréal gearing up for Worlds returning to North America in 2026
By Tom Thewlis Published
-