Anthony Tan
It has been half a century since Montréal hosted the Olympic Games and 52 years since it last welcomed the UCI Road World Championships, so it’s fair to say the Worlds have been a long time coming back to the Canadian city.
This year’s edition will feature 13 races: elite, U-23 and junior men’s and women’s time trials and road races, plus the mixed relay team time trial, introduced in 2019.
All 13 events will be broadcast live in Australia on Stan Sport. Times below are AEST.
September 20: Time Trials – Elite Men and Women
The 2026 Road Worlds kick off on Sunday, September 20 with the elite men’s and women’s time trials.
For the first time since Wollongong in 2022, both genders will ride the same course and cover the same distance: 39.2km.
With just 220 metres of elevation, it is considerably flatter than the 2024 course in Zürich, which featured a 2.4km climb at 4.9%, and a world away from last year’s brutally hilly Kigali course.
Australian broadcast: Women’s TT, 11pm Sunday; Men’s TT, 2:45am Monday, live on Stan Sport.
Elite Women
The women set off at 9am local time, with Switzerland’s Marlen Reusser hoping to defend her title from Kigali.
Reusser will face several of the world’s leading TT specialists, including Tour de France Femmes winner Demi Vollering, who finished third in the time trials at both the Giro and TdF Femmes this season.
Her Dutch compatriot Anna van der Breggen won the Giro TT, although that was a much shorter, uphill affair.
The 21km TT at the TdF, won by Reusser, provides a better guide to what might unfold in Montréal. Dutch riders Lieke Nooijen and Mischa Bredewold finished second and fifth respectively.
One rider capable of causing an upset is Great Britain’s Zoe Bäckstedt, daughter of 2004 Paris-Roubaix champion Magnus. The 21-year-old is the current British TT champion and has won three of her five time trials this season.
Aussie watch: Brodie Chapman, fourth at the TT Worlds in Kigali, declined her selection for personal reasons. “She has been a strong and experienced performer for us at the world championships, so her presence will be missed,” said AusCycling’s head endurance coach, Conor Taylor.
Elite Men
Four names.
Remco Evenepoel of Belgium, Italy’s Filippo Ganna, Ethan Hayter of Great Britain and Switzerland’s Stefan Küng – I’m deadset convinced one will don the rainbow maillot by day’s end.
With three Worlds TT wins on the trot from 2023-25, it’s hard to look past Evenepoel. Fresh from a career-best second overall at the Tour de France, he also won the 26.1km Stage 16 ITT, beating Tadej Pogačar by almost half a minute.
Two-time world champion Ganna, who won the Giro TT and Italian national title this year, is another major contender. His 11th-place finish in the Tour TT came on a course featuring a 9.6km climb at 4.2%; Montréal has no categorised climbs.
Personally, I’d love to see Küng become King in Montréal.
He won the last two TTs he contested, at the Tour de Pologne and Vuelta a España, and deliberately left La Vuelta after its 32.1km Stage 18 time trial to be as fresh as possible for Sunday. If there’s a course that suits a towering 1.93m unit like Küng, this is it.
British riders grew up racing 10-mile time trials and Hayter is no exception. He demolished the opposition at his national championships in June on a course almost identical in length and terrain to Sunday’s race.
If you’re looking for a dark horse, Hayter’s Team GB compatriot Callum Thornley is worth a look. He finished just two seconds behind Küng in the Vuelta TT on September 10.
Aussie watch: Jay Vine, TT silver medallist at the 2025 Worlds in Kigali, is absent due to illness acquired during the Vuelta.
Luke Plapp, seventh in Kigali, will also miss Montréal. Instead, Olympic team pursuit gold medallist and Oceania TT champion Conor Leahy will be Australia’s sole representative and could also feature in the mixed relay.
September 21: Time Trials – Under-23 Men and Women
The U-23 men’s and women’s time trials follow on Monday, September 21.
The women race first over 20.2km. Last year’s inaugural standalone champion Zoe Bäckstedt remains eligible at 21, but will instead step up to the elite race.
Australia’s Felicity Wilson-Haffenden finished fourth in Kigali and will be looking for a medal. The 21-year-old Tasmanian is also the national TT champion.
The U-23 men’s race is another strong opportunity for Australia, with Will Holmes and Cameron Rogers.
Holmes, 20, is the current U-23 TT champion and will join the WorldTour with Jayco AlUla next year. Canberra’s Rogers, 21, has raced with the Netcompany INEOS Racing Academy this season and, with a fast finish, is a threat in both the TT and road race.
Denmark’s Kristian Egholm and Mads Landbo are among the leading international contenders, alongside Héctor Álvarez of Spain, Kasper Haugland of Norway and Michiel Mouris of the Netherlands.
Australian broadcast: Women’s TT, 11pm Monday; Men’s TT, 2am Tuesday, live on Stan Sport.
September 22: Mixed Relay
Australia goes into the mixed relay team time trial as defending champion, having also won in Zürich in 2024.
Teams comprise six riders – three men and three women – who complete an identical two-lap relay course. This year’s 40.4km course is relatively flat, with 262 metres of climbing.
The men start first as a three-rider TTT. Once the second man crosses the relay line, the women set off. The team time stops when the second woman crosses the finish.
Australia won by less than a second from Germany in 2024 and by five seconds from France last year. France, Italy and Switzerland should again provide the strongest opposition.
Australian broadcast: 10:30pm Tuesday, live on Stan Sport.
The junior men’s and women’s individual time trials also take place on September 22, starting at 2:15am and 5:15am AEST respectively.
September 24-25: Road Races – U-23 Men/Women, Junior Men/Women
The U-23 women and junior men race on Thursday, September 24, both completing 10 laps of the 13.4km Mont Royal circuit for 134km and around 2,650m of climbing.
Under-23 Women favourites: Marion Bunel (France), Eleonora Ciabocco (Italy), Ema Comte (France), Isabella Holmgren (Canada), Rosita Reijnhout (Netherlands), Sidney Swierenga (Canada), Nienke Vinke (Netherlands)
Aussie watch: National road champion Mackenzie Coupland and Felicity Wilson-Haffenden will be supported by Sophia Sammons, Talia Appleton, Oceania road champion Tully Schweitzer and Emily Dixon.
The junior men race later that day over the same 134km course.
On Friday, September 25, the U-23 men tackle 174.2km and 13 laps of the circuit, while the junior women race over 80.4km and six laps.
Under-23 Men favourites: Héctor Álvarez (Spain), Max Bock (Germany), Niels Driesen (Belgium), Jan Huber (Switzerland), Victor Loulergue (France), Václav Ježek (Czech Republic), Jan Michal Jackowiak (Poland), Mattia Negrente (Italy), Matteo Scalco (Italy), Aubin Sparfel (France), Matteo Vanhuffel (Belgium), Matisse Van Kerckhove (Belgium), Jermaine Zemke (Germany)
Aussie watch: Cameron Rogers and Jack Ward were selected largely on their European spring-classics form. Rogers won U-23 Gent-Wevelgem, while Ward finished runner-up at U-23 Liège-Bastogne-Liège. They’ll be supported by Will Heffernan, Wil Holmes and Oliver Sims.
Australian broadcast: U-23 women, 11pm Thursday; junior men, 3:30am Friday; U-23 men, 11pm Friday; junior women, 4:15am Saturday, all live on Stan Sport.
September 26-27: Road Races – Elite Men and Women
Unlike almost every other race on the calendar, the Road Worlds are contested by national teams rather than trade teams, making them an anomaly alongside the Olympic Games.
There’s also a difference in team sizes. The defending men’s champion can field nine riders, while the next seven highest-ranked nations can field eight. For the women, the defending champion can field eight, with the next five nations allowed seven.
Elite Women
The women’s race is on Saturday, September 26, starting in Brossard before reaching the Mont Royal circuit after 72.8km.
The main obstacle is the Voie Camillien-Houde, a 2.3km climb averaging 6.2%, followed by the steep Chemin de la Polytechnique, which exceeds 11%. Each lap adds 269m of climbing.
Eight laps bring the total to 180.4km and 2,570m of elevation gain.
Defending champion Magdeleine Vallières Mill of Canada has been solid without hitting the podium since her victory in Kigali. Interestingly, the same was true before she became la championne du monde.
Favourites: Paula Blasi (Spain), Femke de Vries (Netherlands), Niamh Fisher-Black (New Zealand), Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland), Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy), Noemi Rüegg (Switzerland), Magdeleine Vallières Mill (Canada), Demi Vollering (Netherlands)
Aussie watch: Sarah Gigante, despite having just four race days under her belt this season, is Australia’s leading hope. “We know that a fit and healthy Sarah can be extremely competitive on a tough world championship course like the one in Montréal,” said AusCycling’s Head Coach of Endurance, Conor Taylor.
The 25-year-old Victorian will line up alongside Georgia Baker, Lauretta Hanson and Amanda Spratt, who will make her 13th and final World Championships appearance before retiring at the end of the year.
Australian broadcast: 11pm Saturday, live on Stan Sport.
Elite Men
Last year’s elite men’s champion, Tadej Pogačar, will be absent in Montréal.
The Slovenian crashed heavily at the Vuelta, and his absence opens the door for a new world champion.
The 273.7km race begins in Brossard and travels through the Montérégie region before returning to Montréal for 12 laps of the 13.4km circuit. Total elevation gain is 3,803m.
The circuit is the same one used for the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal on September 13, won by Mexican wunderkind Isaac del Toro.
In fact, if any of the top 10 from the GP Montréal were to win the elite men’s road race, it would surprise no one.
Favourites: Richard Carapaz (Ecuador), Giulio Ciccone (Italy), Remco Evenepoel (Belgium), Brandon McNulty (USA), Mads Pedersen (Denmark), Tom Pidcock (Great Britain), Mauro Schmid (Switzerland), Paul Seixas (France), Quinn Simmons (USA), Mattias Skjelmose (Denmark), Wout van Aert (Belgium), Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands)
Aussie watch: Our best hopes are Michael Matthews and Ben O’Connor. Jay Vine will be absent due to illness acquired during the Vuelta.
Matthews has struggled since his March crash with a fire truck, in which he fractured both wrists and suffered serious arm injuries. He made it through the Tour, where his best result was seventh on Stage 9, before finishing sixth at the GP Québec.
O’Connor has also endured a difficult season after riding both the Giro and Tour. He’ll need a significant turnaround to replicate the ride that earned him silver in Zürich two years ago.
Matthews and O’Connor will be joined by Jack Haig, Jai Hindley, Michael Storer and 22-year-old debutant Luke Tuckwell.
Australian broadcast: 11pm Sunday, live on Stan Sport, with the race expected to run into the early hours of Monday morning.
| Date | Event | Australian AEST time |
|---|---|---|
| Sun Sep 20 | Elite women TT | 11:00pm |
| Mon Sep 21 | Elite men TT | 2:45am |
| Mon Sep 21 | U-23 women TT | 11:00pm |
| Tue Sep 22 | U-23 men TT | 2:00am |
| Tue Sep 22 | Mixed relay | 10:30pm |
| Wed Sep 23 | Junior men TT | 2:15am |
| Wed Sep 23 | Junior women TT | 5:15am |
| Thu Sep 24 | U-23 women RR | 11:00pm |
| Fri Sep 25 | Junior men RR | 3:30am |
| Fri Sep 25 | U-23 men RR | 11:00pm |
| Sat Sep 26 | Junior women RR | 4:15am |
| Sat Sep 26 | Elite women RR | 11:00pm |
| Sun Sep 27 | Elite men RR | 11:00pm |
Anthony Tan
Anthony Tan - One of Bicycling Australia’s longest-serving columnists, ‘Tan Man’ has a deep passion for the sport and is a natural communicator.
