The 99th edition of the UCI Road World Championships, which was first contested for amateurs in 1921, will head to Canada, for the first time since the 2003 championships in Hamilton.
This time, Montréal will host the 13 championship races, with road races and time trials for junior, under-23 and elite men and women plus the mixed relay team time trial.
Montréal has a long history of hosting top-level cycling events. The city first hosted the Road World Championships in 1974, then held a women's World Cup running from 1998 to 2009, and the Grand Prix de Montréal WorldTour race from 2010 until today.
The heart of the championships is the hill that gives the city its name, Mont-Royal, with all of the races finishing on the Avenue du Parc. The 39.9km elite time trial courses feature the Saint-Laurent River with visits to the Ile-des-Soeurs and Estacade park, a thin strip of land that parallels the eastern bank. The route also hits the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve Formula 1 track on the Île Notre Dame before heading back to the Avenue du Parc.
A shorter route of 20.2km will be used for the women under-23, junior and team relay tests, while the under-23 men take on a 32.1km route that skips the laps of the F1 circuit.
The road races use the hilly streets around Mount Royal Park for juniors and under-23s, while the elite races begin across the river in Brossard with a big loop around Chambly before a return to the local circuits.
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UCI Road World Championships facts and figures
First edition: Race for amateurs began in 1921
First UCI Road World Champion: Sweden’s Gunnar Sköld
First edition with professionals: In 1927 the first Championships for professional men took place in Nürburgring, Germany
First women's race at event: In 1958 the women's road race was added to the program
First woman to win a rainbow jersey: Luxembourg’s Elsy Jacobs
Most world titles: French rider Jeannie Longo won five rainbow jerseys in the road race and four more in the individual time trial
Youth categories: Dedicated races and medals were introduced in 1975
Most recent event added to schedule: The team time trial mixed relay was put on the schedule in 2019
U23 Women's titles: 2022 was the first year titles were awarded to U23 women in the time trial and road race, with the winner being the first under-23 rider over the line in the elite women's events
U23 Women stand-alone events: The category will have its own races on the schedule from 2025
Laura Weislo is a Cyclingnews veteran of 20 years. Having joined in 2006, Laura extensively covered the Operacion Puerto doping scandal, the years-long conflict between the UCI and the Tour de France organisers ASO over the creation of the WorldTour, and the downfall of Lance Armstrong and his lifetime ban for doping. As Managing Editor, Laura coordinates coverage for North American events and global news.
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