MÛR-DE-BRETAGNE, France — All manner of flags are waved at the Tour de France. But at the start in Rennes on Saturday there were a few dozen examples of one that probably had not made an appearance: the red, blue and green of Eritrea.
Those flags appeared because of Daniel Teklehaimanot and Merhawi Kudus, who are Eritreans of many firsts. In a sport where black riders from any continent are rare, Teklehaimanot and Kudus are the first black Africans in the Tour. Teklehaimanot is the first African rider to wear the red polka dotted jersey as the Tour’s best climber.