Road World Championships - Riders to watch in the elite women's road race

The elite women's peloton will line up to contest what is anticipated to be one of the most brutally challenging races in the history of the UCI Road World Championships on Saturday in Kigali, Rwanda.

The race will feature 11 laps of a 15.1km city circuit, totalling 164.4km and 3,350 metres of elevation gain, with its highest point at 1,493 meters. There are two climbs on the circuit: the Côte de Kigali Golf climb, 800m at 8.1% halfway around the local circuit, and the decisive Côte de Kimihurura climb, 1.3km at 6.3% on the circuit close to the finish, which is cobbled, and which some of the women will have already experienced in the individual time trial last Sunday.

The 3,350 metres of elevation gain, altitude and the cobbled ascent call for a special type of rider who is an exceptional climber, but who is also explosive and technically savvy, and so, at first glance, offer little room for surprises.

There will be no defending champion this year as the two-time winner from Belgium, Lotte Kopecky, opted not to compete due to ongoing back pain, leaving the race wide open for a new world champion to take her place in Kigali.

Cyclingnews takes a closer look at a handful of the riders to watch at this historic World Championships.

Kim Le Court-Pienaar (Mauritius)

Kim Le Court-Pienaar has had a stunning season, highlighted by winning Liège-Bastogne-Liège and standing on the podium in four stages, winning stage 5 into Guéret and wearing the yellow jersey at the Tour de France. She has been on a steep trajectory over the last two seasons, turning heads last year with a stage win at the Giro d'Italia.

She raced for two years, from 2015 to 2016, for Continental teams Matrix Fitness and Bizkaia-Durango, but restarted her career on the WorldTour with AG Insurance-Soudal, signing a contract from 2024 through to the end of 2028.

Le Court-Pienaar is one of Africa's best chances of winning a rainbow jersey at the historic Rwanda Worlds. Given the difficulty of the course and her strengths as a rider, she has every chance of winning this race on the streets of Kigali.

She expects a race of attrition, and while she won't have as many teammates as nations like Italy and France, she will have the support of Mauritius and the Continent in her aim to win the world title.

Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy)

Elisa Longo Borghini will have the support of a full squadra azzurra of seven riders in their attempt to win the rainbow jersey. Many national teams have opted not to send a full roster, and some nations did not send a team at all. So, the Italians will not only have the advantage in numbers, but also one of the best riders in the world.

Longo Borghini has had a few ups and downs over the years, but with back-to-back Giro d'Italia wins, a triumph at Paris-Roubaix and Tour of Flanders, and several other top Spring Classics, she will line up as one of the main favourites for this race.

The Italians are well-known for their cohesion and near-perfect tactical racing; look no further than the Leuven Worlds won by Elisa Balsamo, but despite having the numbers in Kigali, the brutally challenging course might not lend itself well to a game of tactics. Even so, Longo Borghini has been known for her aggressive racing style and revels in a tough challenge, often emerging victorious.

Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (South Africa)

Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio has also struggled with health and injuries over the last year, but seems to be coming into top form ahead of these Worlds, lining up as one of the most experienced African riders in the field, having competed in the top-tier in Europe for the last 15 years.

She will represent her nation of South Africa and has extensive experience racing in various national-level races across Africa, as well as in the African Championships. She previewed this course last November and arrived straight from an altitude training camp in the Pyrenees to prepare for the Classics-style race at an altitude of 1,450 metres.

A specialist of the Ardennes Classics, her strength on the climbs, local course knowledge and motivation to bring South Africa a world title make her one of the biggest riders to watch in Kigali

Marlen Reusser (Switzerland)

An outstanding world-title winning performance in the individual time trial has put Marlen Reusser in the hot seat as a favourite for the elite women's road race, where she could win a second rainbow jersey in Kigali.

While she is known for her strength in the time trial, she is also one of the top climbers in the world, having won overall titles at the Vuelta a Burgos and Tour de Suisse this year, and secured second overall at the Vuelta a España and Giro d'Italia.

She admits that the challenging course suits her; a strong climber and fast descender, she has never shied away from a breakaway, which often leads to victories, and she will be among the selection of riders in pursuit of the world title in Kigali.

Noemi Rüegg is another Swiss rider to watch, having finished third at Milan-San Remo in the spring; she sets herself up as a support rider for Reusser and a potential second card to play for a medal.

Demi Vollering and Anna van der Breggen (Netherlands)

Like the Italians, the Dutch are also known for their strength in numbers, but this year marks a turning point with only six riders on the start line. Still, they have two big favourites in former world champion Anna van der Breggen and former Tour de France winner Demi Vollering.

Both riders finished the individual time trial in the medals earlier this week, behind winner Reusser, Van der Breggen earned silver and Vollering bronze. There were mixed feelings about their performances, with Van der Breggen pleased to earn a medal in her first year back from a three-year retirement and Vollering hoping to have done better.

With a last chance to win an elite women's world title in Kigali, the Dutch team will want to put their best foot forward to set up Van der Breggen and Vollering for the best shot at victory.

Vollering is likely to be the leader, having shown strong performances this year, winning Strade Bianche, the Vuelta a España, Itzulia Women, and Volta a Catalunya, while also finishing second overall at the Tour de France and the Tour de Suisse, and on the podium at Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. However, she was not feeling her best in the individual time trial on Saturday.

Van der Breggen will give the Dutch a second card to play. She has been steadily improving her form this year, with highlights including a second-place finish at Strade Bianche, a third-place finish at the Vuelta a España, a sixth-place finish at the Giro d'Italia, and a silver medal in the time trial last weekend. She is also a two-time road world champion and has the experience to back up a strong performance in Kigali.

A family matter has prevented former world champion Marianne Vos from competing at these Worlds, and Femke de Vries has replaced her. However, the team also has support riders Shirin van Anrooij, Pauliena Rooijakkers, and Yara Kastelijn, making one of the most powerful teams on the start line.

Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France)

Returning to road racing this year with Visma-Lease a Bike, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot has surpassed everyone's expectations, winning Paris-Roubaix and the Tour de France, and she is aiming to add a second-career elite women's road race world title to her long list of achievements.

Ferrand-Prévot is no stranger to the rainbow jersey, having spent most of her career wearing one. She has won 15 world titles across mountain biking, cyclocross, and road cycling, with her last world title on the road from Ponferrada in 2014.

She has not only demonstrated her ability to win in the cobbled and hilly Spring Classics but also in the high-altitude ascents, with the technical and tactical skill of a champion.

Like Italy, France is the only other national team to fill a full roster of seven riders to support Ferrand-Prévot, and with riders like Juliette Labous, Évita Muzic, and Maeva Squiban, who turned heads with two stage wins at the Tour de France, will help bring back dangerous breakaways and set up Ferrand-Prévot for a victory.

Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Poland)

Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney has been one of the most consistently strong riders of the season, but only really reached her top form at the Tour de Suisse in June, where she finished third overall.

After winning the Polish national title, she went into the targeted Tour de France aiming to win a second overall title, and while that did not happen, she managed to fight her way back onto the podium, finishing third behind Ferrand-Prévot and Vollering.

Niewiadoma-Phinney explained to Cyclingnews that the Rwanda Worlds course, while hilly and well-suited to her, will be extra challenging due to the altitude. She anticipates only having one chance to make a big move, without the ability to recover between efforts, so she intends to make her efforts count.

Poland only has three riders on the start line, but Niewiadoma-Phinney said she will likely play off the bigger teams, such as Italy and the Netherlands.

Antonia Niedermaier (Germany)

Germany's best chance at a medal rests on the shoulders of Antonia Niedermaier, but she will have a strong team to support her with the likes of Liane Lippert and German road race champion Franziska Koch on the three-rider team.

We can anticipate Lippert attempting to join an early breakaway and playing that card to perfection for Germany, but it is more likely that the race will end in a selection of strong climbers.

Niedermaier, the German time trial champion, has had a strong season, often finishing among the top climbers, with seventh-place finishes at the UAE Tour, eighth at Itzulia Women, and fifth at the Giro d'Italia.

After a sub-par performance at GP de Plouay, she was able to turn her season around with a recent sixth place in the time trial at the World Championships, and she appears to be in good form for the road race.

Niamh Fisher-Black (New Zealand)

Niamh Fisher-Black won the under-23 road race at the World Championships in Wollongong in 2022, and she will aim to improve on that in the elite race in Kigali.

Racing for Lidl-Trek during the year, she has excelled in leadership roles, finishing sixth overall at the Vuelta a España, fourth overall at the Tour de Suisse, and fifth at the Tour de France.

She was also in the top 10 at Strade Bianche, Flèche Wallonne, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, showing her versatility across challenging one-day terrain.

New Zealand will only field two riders, along with Ella Wyllie, so the pair will have to manage their efforts. While it will be impossible to follow every move, Fisher-Black will undoubtedly be among the selections in the final.

Mavi García (Spain)

An outside chance for this World Championships is Spain's Mavi Garcia, who excels in challenging one-day races, often preferring to race out front, instigating breakaways and going on long solo attacks.

She is consistently among the top 10 in either stages or one-day races, most recently catching the peloton off guard on stage 2 of the Tour de France to claim the solo victory in Quimper.

Spain also fields several powerful climbers, such as Ane Santesteban and Sara Martin, on its six-rider roster, so Garcia will have the support she needs in the early stages of the race.

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