A year ago, Biniam Girmay sprinter to silver in the under-23 road race at the UCI Road World Championships in Leuven, but such is his success this season, the 22-year old Eritrean is a dangerous outsider for Sunday's race and a real concern for major nations like Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Italy.
Back in the spring, Girmay outmanoeuvred his Classics rivals and then outsprinted Christophe Laporte, Dries van Gestel and Jasper Stuyven to win Gent-Wevelgem and become the first African rider to win a WorldTour Classic.
At the Giro d'Italia, he beat Mathieu van der Poel in a sprint to win the stage in Jesi after being unafraid to play mind games with the Dutch man and lose on the circuit stage around Naples two days before.
There is a real sense that Girmay could pull off a similar performance in the elite men's road race on Sunday and even win the world title.
He has raced little since the infamous cork eye injury on the Giro d'Italia podium and a crash at the Tour de Wallonie in late July, further reducing his racing. However he did not ride the Tour de France and so is very fresh and has again trained at altitude at home in Eritrean before his final block of races with Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert.
He is on a run of top ten results in a string of one-day races. That includes third at the GP de Québec in Canada and a close second behind Van der Poel at the more recent GP de Wallonie after climbing the Citadelle de Namur.
"I'm super motivated. The World Championships is one the races of the year for me," Birmay made clear. "I'm getting better and better and now my form is okay. We'll see on Sunday. I'm ready and so are my teammates. We're looking forward to the race."
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"Being considered as a contender or favourite boosts my morale but there are two sides to it. After my performances this year, I also know that I won't get much space. If I move, all eyes will be on me too. But that's OK."
Friday's under-23 road race and Thursday's training day allowed riders to really understand the difficulties of the 266km Wollongong course and especially the impact of the Mount Pleasant climb and the need for good positioning on the fast roads and many corners. Girmay likes the course.
"We've seen the course now and it's pretty good for me. It's really nice and I'm happy about the parcours," Girmay told Bicisport in a video interview.
The distance doesn't scare me
Girmay took a breakthrough win at Gent-Wevelgem back in the spring (Image credit: Getty Images)
Eritrea has six places in the men's road race, with Girmay hoping that European-based riders Natnael Tesfatsion, Merhawi Kudus, Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier and Henok Mulubrhan can be there to help him in the final laps.
He knows he is likely to be alone when the final attacks are made but he is ready to play off the other team's strength in numbers. Girmay knows that riders from smaller nations have often surprised the stronger teams.
"We're not the favourite team but we still have a chance to win," he made clear. "We've got six riders, we're all pro riders and they're in good shape. We don't need to make the race, our plan is to stay protected. It's more about tactics and about playing it more tactically. We have to have a clear plan.
"Natnael Tesfatsion, Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier and Henok Mulubrhan have already proven that they can handle a long race. I expect them to help me until the last two laps. That would be perfect. Then it's up to me. I think the race will be a lot like the under-23 last year and I got a medal there…"
The extra race distance does not concern him, Girmay added.
"The distance doesn't scare me," he said. "It's true that I don't have that much experience on those long distances compared to the other riders but this year I have already ridden several races that are above two hundred kilometres, including Milan-San Remo, Gent-Wevelgem and recently the Bretagne Classic.
"They all suited me well and I always finished u p there. In the last month I've also regularly trained for between five to seven hours. I am convinced that my preparation for this World Championships is good."
Like everyone, Girmay will be watching the big-name favourite closely, with a mental list of riders he should follow and challenge.
"I will put Wout van Aert in the number one spot," he said. "Then behind him Michael Matthews, who is racing in his own country. The course seems tailor-made for him. In the GP de Montréal, Tadej Pogačar also proved that he is one of the favourites.
"Belgium is one of the big teams, but the race is often different to how people and teams expect. I will see which team is the strongest and adapt to that. Things can change very quickly.
"It's something I have to decide in the race. You can't make too many plans, there are no race radios and that makes a world of difference. So you have to trust yourself and race on instinct."
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Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.
