TEAM AMANI

Team AMANI’s 2025 kit is inspired by the Maasai shuka, a distinctive check cloth symbolic of life in the Great Rift Valley and a token of respect awarded to the winners of AMANI’s Migration Gravel Race.

“In 20 years I believe there will be many Black African cyclists fighting for the yellow jersey.” – Tsgabu Grmay

AMANI, meaning ‘peace’ in Swahili, was founded in 2018 by the late Sule Kangangi, a bike racer who grew up on the outskirts of Eldoret, 32km southwest of Iten. Along with co-founder, Mikel Delagrange, their vision was to enable a new generation of East Africans to compete internationally, to open the door for African cycling by using the success of Kenya’s runners as the blueprint.

Cycling in Iten is still – in terms of training and racing – a minority pursuit. In a town with very little car traffic you’ll certainly see locals on bikes, but few will be riding pacelines or sprinting for road signs. 

Kenyan running however has been operating at the top level since the 1980s. Every day, thousands of runners pour out of the myriad training camps in and around Iten. And they’re all running in the footprints of champions like Tegla Loroupe, Edna Kiplagat and the fastest marathon runner in history, Eliud Kipchoge.

“The most important aspect of Iten is its symbolism. There is a culture of excellence, all emanating out of this single space”, says Delagrange, the self-appointed ‘Head Cheerleader’ of the AMANI project.

Iten sits right on the lip of the Great Rift Valley, an area that has seen upheaval and struggle since Kenya claimed independence in the 1960s. But somehow Iten has remained a safe haven for those in the pursuit of their dreams on the track, in marathons, and more recently, bike racing.   

AMANI House, the training digs for Team AMANI and their Black Mamba development squad, stands as its own symbol of intent, perched at the top of the town, with views down into the valley 30km below. This is where riders from Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia, the DRC and Kenya come to learn their craft. 

Finley Newmark, AMANI photographer and filmmaker, has been involved with the team since racing at the very first Migration Gravel Race (AMANI’s flagship race in the Maasai Mara) in 2021, getting to know Kangangi, Delagrange and the team. 

“I first went to Iten in February 2023 with this idea of making a documentary, riding with and getting to know AMANI riders John Kariuki, Salim Kipkemboi, and Charles Kagimu. There’s a simplicity there, no excess.”

This back-to-basics environment echoes the setup for many of the running camps in Iten. According to Delagrange: “You could drive through it and not realize that you passed million dollar Nike facilities because it's all really understated. And this is Eliud Kipchoge's influence.”

Finley continues: “For the riders it’s an inspiring environment to be able to train and live in. Sule is buried there now and his widow, Hellen, helps run the camp and acts as a maternal figure for many of the youngest riders.” 

Sharing the roads with the occasional matatu (bus) transporting people between Iten, Eldorat, and elsewhere in the Great Rift Valley, the riding here is majestic, with long climbs up to 3,000m and endless red dirt roads to explore. And AMANI have used this incredible terrain to their advantage.

“There’s always been a lack of racing opportunities. Riders didn’t have access to top-level competition, so that’s why the Migration Gravel Race (MGR) was created”, explains Delagrange. Widely regarded as one of the world’s toughest gravel events, MGR is a four-stage, semi-supported endurance race set against the dramatic backdrop of Kenya’s Maasai Mara. 

It’s events like MGR that have provided a platform to showcase East African talent alongside riders from more ‘traditional’ cycling backgrounds, helping catapult AMANI riders to the best gravel competitions in Europe and North America.

AMANI’s development of the racing scene in East Africa has centred around gravel, but their ambitions go much further than dirt. With ex-WorldTour rider Tsgabu Grmay now as both rider, mentor and directeur sportif, in 2025 AMANI are taking their mission to Africa’s road circuit, beginning with the Tour of Rwanda. Their aim is to surface East Africa’s most promising riders, using AMANI’s platform to promote road racing on the continent.

“In 20 years I believe there will be many Black African cyclists fighting for the yellow jersey” says Grmay. In a place where they cultivate the greatest runners on Earth, AMANI is on a journey to produce the best cyclists on the planet, too.