For Dimension Data for Qhubeka, the Tour of Rwanda has brought great success to the WorldTour development team. Stage 2 of the UCI 2.2 race, though, was a day of disappointment as Joseph Areruya lost the yellow jersey he won in dominant fashion the day prior.
In the team meeting that followed and on the morning of stage 3, sports director Andrew Smith hatched a plan for an aggressive approach from the gun. Identifying the technical circuit in Rubavu, which included a short uphill sector of pavé, Smith explained to Cyclingnews and RFI that he wanted an aggressive team showing from his squad. And the riders delivered in spades, making the stage and claiming the win in a bunch sprint with Areruya.
"We looked a little bit at what the peloton did in the circuit because it was more technical than most of the roads in Africa," he explained. "We managed to get two guys in the move early on and then Joseph managed to ride over and we had three guys in the front, which really suited us."
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The two men in the breakaway with Areruya were Stefan de Bod, third in the prologue, and Rwandan Samuel Mugisha. The duo drove the early break on the circuits and when the race departed the city on the banks of Lake Kivu for Musanze, played the tactical and team game with Areruya after he rode across the gap.
Although the break didn't make it to the line, the move forced several squads onto the back foot and forced them into the chase. The peloton was well aware of how quickly Areruya could take ten seconds and turn it into a minute-plus-winning move. The move was also designed to test the strength of Team Illuminate's three-man team and its grip on the yellow jersey with Simon Pellaud.
The American squad proved worthy of the challenge from Dimension Data for Qhubeka. But with Edwin Avila on bidon duty for the race, in the sprint the Colombian was out-muscled by Areruya. Despite not gaining time on Pellaud, who was fourth in the sprint and retained his one-minute lead, there was cause for celebration because of his stage victory.
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