A field of 169 cyclists from Tanzania and 11 foreign countries is set to line up for the Vodacom Coastal Classic on Sunday, turning the 109-kilometre race into one of the most internationally diverse cycling events staged in the country this year.
The race will start at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam and finish in Bagamoyo, with riders from Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, South Africa, Australia, the Netherlands, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Burundi expected to compete alongside Tanzanian riders.
The growing field has added an international dimension to the event while providing local cyclists with an opportunity to test themselves against riders from different cycling backgrounds. Vodacom Tanzania PLC director of external affairs and regulatory Zuweina Farah said the participation of foreign cyclists demonstrated the growing appeal of the Coastal Classic and the wider Nyerere Cycling Tour.
The race will also carry increased financial incentives, with the winners in both the men’s and women’s categories set to receive Sh10 million each. Second-place finishers will pocket Sh7 million, while third-place winners will receive Sh5 million. Riders finishing fourth to 10th will each receive Sh1 million.
The Coastal Classic is being staged as the opening competitive event of the Nyerere Cycling Tour, which will begin its main journey towards Butiama on October 5 after the Dar es Salaam-Bagamoyo race.
Farah said the cycling programme was designed to use sport as a platform for wider community development, with education, health and environmental conservation forming key pillars of the initiative.
‘The Vodacom Coastal Classic is part of the Nyerere Cycling Tour, whose main objective is to support communities through three important areas: education, health and the environment,’ she said.
The main Nyerere Cycling Tour will cover about 1,415 kilometres from Dar es Salaam to Butiama, passing through 10 regions before ending at the home and burial site of Tanzania’s founding father, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, in Mara Region.
More than 200 cyclists are expected to take part in the main tour, with 213 already registered, including 23 women. The riders will pass through areas including Korogwe, Same, Arusha, Babati, Singida, Nzega, Mwanza and Bunda, with rest stops planned in Arusha and Mwanza.
Beyond the road, the tour will carry a substantial community development programme targeting more than 25,000 beneficiaries.
The programme includes the distribution of 1,000 desks, construction of 10 classrooms, renovation of 40 classrooms and tree planting, alongside financial literacy, road safety and other community awareness activities.
Stanbic Bank Tanzania sustainability manager Annette Nkini said the bank’s participation was intended to ensure the tour creates a lasting impact in the communities along the route.
Stanbic has committed Sh100 million to this year’s tour as part of a three-year, Sh300 million commitment running from 2025 to 2027. The bank will also provide financial literacy education to young people and communities along the route.
For the Coastal Classic, however, attention will first turn to the 169 riders competing over the 109-kilometre course.