{"id":2000112995,"date":"2026-05-24T19:58:27","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T17:58:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/?p=2000112995"},"modified":"2026-05-24T20:16:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T18:16:52","slug":"kabera-gasare-salomon-becomes-first-rwandan-to-compete-in-fia-karting-european-championship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/kabera-gasare-salomon-becomes-first-rwandan-to-compete-in-fia-karting-european-championship\/","title":{"rendered":"Kabera Gasare Salomon becomes first Rwandan to compete in FIA Karting European Championship"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The competition, one of the major karting events organized by the FIA as part of its 2026 calendar, was held in Genk, Belgium, from May 21 to 24, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The championship brings together some of the world\u2019s most promising young karting talents, particularly drivers training through professional development academies. Rwanda was among only three African nations represented at the event, which featured competitors from 51 countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kabera secured qualification after emerging as one of the top young karting drivers in Rwanda through competitions organized by the Rwanda Automobile Club (RAC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 2026 edition marked both Kabera\u2019s debut in the championship and Rwanda\u2019s first-ever participation in the competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Still adapting to the international stage, the young driver competed in the opening phase of the championship held on May 21 and 22.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking to IGIHE, Kabera encouraged more young people to pursue karting despite its challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf you want to join kart racing, never lose hope. Sometimes it is difficult, and it takes persistence to reach the top,\u201d he said. \u201cI want to become a strong and disciplined driver, both physically and mentally, with clear goals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kabera added that the experience in Belgium highlighted the importance of continuous training and dedication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI learned that I need much more practice and exposure because success is not only about talent. It also depends on the effort you put in and how hard you work to achieve your goals,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kabera&#8217;s participation in the championship was sponsored by MUA and Inyange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His coach, Gakwaya Eric, said the competition provided valuable lessons that will help shape the driver\u2019s future development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe gained important international experience and saw the level at which the sport is played globally,\u201d Gakwaya said. \u201cWe still need more training opportunities and better infrastructure because Rwanda does not yet have a circuit comparable to the one in Genk. At the moment, he trains in parking areas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gakwaya revealed that plans are underway to secure additional training opportunities for Kabera in South Africa or Kenya, where karting infrastructure is more advanced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe are also looking at opportunities in Italy so that he can progress beyond qualifying rounds and eventually compete in final stages. Our long-term target is to help Rwanda break into the top 15 nations in the sport,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The coach also noted that Kabera\u2019s performance was particularly impressive considering he had trained for only two months before competing against drivers with up to five years of experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">RAC emphasized that participation in international karting competitions requires significant financial investment and thanked sponsors who supported Kabera\u2019s journey. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The federation also called on additional partners and sponsors to support the growth of motorsport in Rwanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kabera is expected to continue his international campaign in July 2026 at the Circuito Internazionale Napoli in Italy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-1 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113029\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.04_14-e03c3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113029\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113028\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.03_43-22638.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113028\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113027\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.03_25-52e01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113027\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113026\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.03_17-38754.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113026\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113025\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.03.07-7bc61.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113025\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113024\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.03.00-4082e.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113024\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113023\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_46-f876c.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113023\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113022\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_32-c6ced.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113022\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113021\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_23-24c6f.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113021\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113020\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113020\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113019\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.01_24-6c3c4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113019\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113018\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.01_10-4ad09.jpg\" alt=\"\" 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class=\"wp-image-2000113015\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113014\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.00_19-bcf8a.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113014\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113013\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.00_12-2ec80.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113013\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113012\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_55-e54d6.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113012\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113011\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_39-85dcb.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113011\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113010\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25-5ad95.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113010\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113009\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25_6_-95ae5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113009\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113008\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25_5_-68603.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113008\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113007\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25_4_-509bb.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113007\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113006\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25_3_-e87fc.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113006\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113005\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25_2_-5de74.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113005\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113004\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_25_1_-73daf.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113004\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113003\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.59_24-ff7de.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113003\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113002\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.53_45-bd2b4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113002\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113001\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.52_58-e477b.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113001\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000113000\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.52_52-ef9b4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000113000\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000112999\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.52_34-99c9b.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000112999\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000112998\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.52_22-0348e.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000112998\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000112997\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_14.51_10-9d04e.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000112997\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" data-id=\"2000112996\" src=\"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/542a0010-2-68ffe-2-fd116-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2000112996\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Photos: Emmy Uwimana<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Karirima@igihe.com<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rwandan karting driver Kabera Gasare Salomon made history by becoming the first Rwandan to compete in the F\u00e9d\u00e9ration Internationale de l&#8217;Automobile Karting European Championship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2000113020,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[2285],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000112995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-karirima-a-ngarambe-8"],"bylines":[{"id":2285,"name":"Karirima A. 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Ngarambe","slug":"karirima-a-ngarambe-8","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":null}],"featured_image":{"id":2000113020,"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":800,"height":533,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg","width":150,"height":100},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg","width":300,"height":200},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg","width":768,"height":512},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg","width":800,"height":533},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/whatsapp_image_2026-05-24_at_15.02_02-58f64.jpg","width":800,"height":533}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000112995","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000112995"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000112995\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000113032,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000112995\/revisions\/2000113032"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000113020"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000112995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000112995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000112995"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000112995"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000112995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}