Eritrea: Natnael Tesfazion Secures Second Place At Cadel Evans Road Race

Natnael Tesfazion, an Eritrean professional cyclist with the American Lidl-Trek team, claimed second place at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race in Australia today. Natnael Tesfazion finished closely behind the stage winner, Australian cyclist Laurence Pithie, after a tight sprint to the finish line. He completed the 174.3 km race in 4 hours, 17 minutes, and 40 seconds, averaging a speed of 40.5 km/h.

The race featured numerous attempts of breakaways. In a dramatic turn of events with just 9 km remaining, several frontrunners, including Eritrea’s Biniam Girmay from the Belgian Intermarché-Wanty team, fell back from the leading pack.

Natnael was part of an elite group of 13 riders who tackled a challenging climb with a 7.8% grade, demonstrating his sprinting skill to win his second silver medal in this prestigious Australian event. His first silver was earned at the tour’s opening race on January 13.

Further success for Eritrea came on January 25, when Biniam Girmay won a gold medal at the Australian Surf Coast Classic 2024, also representing Intermarché-Wanty.

The Eritrean community in Australia has been notably supportive, enthusiastically cheering for their cyclists throughout the tour, drawing attention from various groups.

In related news, Natnael Berhane, another distinguished Eritrean cyclist representing the Beykoz Belediyesi Spor club from Türkiye, secured second place in a one-day race in Türkiye yesterday. Natnael Berhane completed the 139 km race in 3 hours, 26 minutes, and 5 seconds, maintaining an average speed of 40.6 km/h.

Eritrean cyclists have continued to achieve remarkable results on the international stage, with five podium finishes in various competitions just one month into 2024.