UCI Road World Championships 2018: Men's Elite Individual Time Trial

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Two-horse races? Top contenders for Worlds elite time trials

Like the pages of a book - A postcard from the 1996 Worlds

Hello and a warm welcome to the Cyclingnews live race centre for our coverage of the elite men's individual time trial at the 2018 UCI Road World Championships. 

Many are calling this a 'two-horse' race, with Tom Dumoulin and Rohan Dennis the overwhelming favourites to walk away with the rainbow jersey - or skinsuit. Who will it be? Or can one of the outsiders spring a surprise?

Wilco Kelderman will be the first rider down the ramp at 14:10 local time, so in around six minutes. That's a strong first starter and the Dutchman is expected to be somewhere towards the top of the standings today. 2017 champion Dumoulin is the last rider off at 15:40. 

Apart from Kelderman, the majority of the big contenders are concentrated towards the bottom of the order...

10 Soren Kragh Andersen (Denmark) 15:26:30
9 Stefan Kung (Switzerland) 15:28:00
8 Nelson Oliveira (Portugal) 15:29:30
7 Tony Martin (Germany) 15:31:00
6 Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) 15:32:30
5 Victor Campenaerts (Belgium) 15:34:00
4 Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus) 15:35:30
3 Jonathan Castroviejo (Spain) 15:37:00
2 Rohan Dennis (Australia) 15:38:30
1 Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands) 15:40:00

For a full list of starters and their times, click here. 

Wilco Kelderman rolls down the ramp and we are underway!

Our latest podcast from the Worlds is out now. The guys in Innsbruck discuss the TT action from yesterday, with a Dutch clean sweep in the elite women's race and a dominant display from Remco Evenepoel in the junior men's - just don't call him the next Eddy Merckx. They also look ahead to today's race. Here's the link you need.

Alessandro De Marchi (Italy) is second off the ramp.

The following starters are less well known. Here they are:

59 Darel Christopher Jr BVI 14:13:00
58 Najeeb Ullah (Pakistan) 14:14:30
57 Ahmad Badreddin Wais (Syrian Arab Republic) 14:16:00
56 Dealton Nur Arif Prayogo (Indonesia) 14:17:30
55 Tsgabu Gebremaryam Grmay (Ethiopia) 14:19:00
54 Eugert Zhupa (Albania) 14:20:30
53 Ho San Chiu (Hong Kong, China) 14:22:00
52 Arsalan Anjum Muhammad (Pakistan) 14:23:30

A little word on the course. It's 52.5km long and a really varied test. First up are some 30km of flat valley roads but the bigger power riders who are at home there will soon find themselves out of their element on that Gnandenwald climb, which averages 7%. After that there's a descent and then rolling roads to the line. 

Ignatas Konovalovas gets underway and should win based purely on his garish yellow and green Lithuanian skinsuit. 

We have two intermediate checkpoints on today's course by which to measure the contenders. The first comes after 16.6km and the second at the top of the climb after 35km. 

And as I type that Kelderman breezes through the first checkpoint. He does so in a time of 19:20, which means he's averaging 51.5kmh. 

Frenchman Yoann Paillot feels his number flapping in the wind and rips it off. Not sure the officials will be best pleased, but it was costing him time. 

Jan Barta (Czech Republic), Nicolas Roche (Ireland), Georg Preidler (Austria), Anton Vorobyev (Russian Federation), Joseph Rosskopf (United States Of America), Hamish Bond (New Zealand), and Tao Geoghegan Hart (Great Britain) have all recently taken to the course. 

Rosskopf could go well here. He was runner-up behind Dennis on stage 16 of the Vuelta recently. 

Max Schachmann (Germany) is off next, and a few people have been talking about his chances today. He's only 24 but has a big engine and won gold at the weekend in the team time trial with Quick-Step Floors. 

Maciej Bodnar (Poland) goes now. He's a really strong time triallist, winning the penultimate stage of the Tour de France last year and beating Kwiatkowski at Polish nationals this year. The climb may well blunt his effort, however. 

New fastest time at the first checkpoint, and it goes to Jan Barta, decked out in a delightful blue Czech Republic kit. He posts 19:14 to move six seconds up on Kelderman. 

The provisional standings should be updating on the right-hand side of your screens. 

Jos Van Emden is another strong Dutch time triallist and he's just begun his ride. Again, might be a touch hilly for him. 

Rosskopf posts 19:03 to set the fastest time at the first split. 

Wow. Denmark's Martin Toft Madsen knocks a big chunk out of Rosskopf at the first checkpoint. 18:45 is the new benchmark. 

Madsen only races at Continental level but has some decent time trial performances to his name. He's been Danish champion for the past three years and won the Chrono des Nations last year. 

Schachmann is 12 seconds down at the first checkpoint but has the second quickest time so far. 

Bodnar's going well here. He's less than a second off Madsen at the first checkpoint. 

Another glimpse of that Czech kit thanks to Josef Cerny...

Favourite national kits seems to be the hottest topic of conversation at CN Towers today (that and the best flavour of French Fancies). Have you got a favourite? Please let us know, and feel free to go back through the years... You can reach me via Twitter @paddyfletch

Van Emden is fourth quickest, 14 seconds down, at the first checkpoint. 

Rodrigo Contreras (remember him?) is off the ramp now. He turned pro with Quick-Step a few years ago but things didn't work out for him in Europe. After a couple of seasons at domestic level in Colombia, in which he's won a fair few time trials, he's giving a pro career another shot next year when he returns to the WorldTour with Astana. 

Mathias Brandle is down the ramp to a warm cheer from his home Austrian crowd. A former Hour Record holder, he should hold his own today. 

We have our first finisher. 

Kelderman comes to the line and stops the clock on 1 hour, seven minutes, 23 seconds. 

Barta knocks 10 seconds out of Kelderman at the top of the climb. 

Tejay van Garderen (USA) is off the ramp and we're geting towards the business end now. 

Also underway are Ryan Mullen (Ireland), Pavel Sivakov (Russia), Jan Tratnik (Slovenia), and Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakhstan).

Bob Jungels (Luxembourg) is the next off. He could be a real threat today. 

Rosskopf comes to the top of the climb and the checkpoint nine seconds down on Barta. 

Alex Dowsett (GB) is underway. He's another strong time triallist but one for whom the climb is likely to knock the wind out of his sails. 

De Marchi finished his ride 45 seconds down on Kelderman. 

Former rower Hamish Bond is having a good ride. The New Zealander is fourth as it stands at the second checkpoint, 15 seconds down. 

Fellow Kiwi Paddy Bevin is looking strong on the early part of the course.

Here comes Madsen to the second checkpoint, and again he's taken a huge chunk. He has the fastest time by some 42 seconds. 

Soren Kragh Andersen (Denmark), Stefan Kung (Switzerland), and Nelson Oliveira (Portugal) are three quality TT-ists who have just taken to the course.

Four-time world champion Tony Martin (Germany) is next up. He has said a fifth title is a long shot but is aiming for a medal. 

Our top story today is the latest in our 'Worlds Postcard' series. This time it's Axel Merckx, who takes about Lugano 1996 and stepping out of his father's shadow. It's a great read. 

Like the pages of a book - A postcard from the 1996 Worlds
 

Kwiatkowski starts his ride. He could be in with a real shout today but how fatigued will he be after the Tour and Vuelta, and how much will he want to save for Sunday's road race?

Schachmann is second quickest at the second checkpoint, 35 seconds down on Madsen. 

Bodnar now goes second quickest at that checkpoint, three seconds up on Schachmann. As expected, the Pole has lost ground on the climb. 

Victor Campenaerts (Belgium) gets underway. A two-time European champion, but the climb will hurt his chances. 

And now Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus). He hasn't done much against the clock this year but he always seems to turn up for Worlds. He won in 2015, remember. 

Barta comes to the finish and knocks 13 seconds out of Kelderman's time. 

Jonathan Castroviejo (Spain) gets underway and almost immediately into that characteristic aero tuck. He's a real contender for a medal today as he should be able to absorb the climb. 

And now for the big two!

Rohan Dennis (Australia) rolls down the ramp. He's had a long line of disappointment at Worlds - could this be his year?

Van Garderen on a mission!

The American is fastest at the first checkpoint, knocking three seconds out of Madsen's time. 

And now for Tom Dumoulin. The Dutchman looks composed as he sets off to try and do the double. There are question marks over his form but if he's at his best there's almost no stopping him.

Bevin is fourth fastest so far at the first checkpoint. 

Jungels is eighth at the first checkpoint, 17 seconds down. 

Rosskopf comes to the finish line. He's not going to beat Barta's time but goes into second with 01:07:22.

Dowsett is 11 seconds down at the first checkpoint, fifth provisionally. 

New fastest time at the first checkpoint

It's Andersen, who is two seconds quicker than Van Garderen. 

New fastest time at the finish

Madsen continues his strong ride all the way to the line, clocking 01:06:25 to move into the hotseat by some 44 seconds. 

Schachmann crosses the finish line and clocks 1:06:42 to go second, 16 seconds down on Madsen. 

The late starters are going strong here and the benchmark at the first checkpoint is constantly tumbling...

Tony Martin has the new fastest time after 16.6km with 18:13.

Bodnar finishes sixth, behind Kelderman, with 1:07:25.

Tony Martin is some 25 seconds up on Madsen as it stands. There's a long way to go, though, with a big hill in the way. 

We'll bring you a full list of times at the first checkpoint when Dennis and Dumoulin roll through, which will be soon. 

Dennis goes 14 seconds faster than Martin at the first split!

Now for Dumoulin. How is he going today?

Advantage Dennis

Dumoulin is 8.8 seconds down at the first checkpoint (16.6km)

Times at the first checkpoint (16.6km)

Rohan Dennis - 17:58.95
Tom Dumoulin +8.84
Tony Martin +14.74
Victor Campenaerts +15.29
Vasil Kiryenka +29.97
Stefan Kung +29.99
Jonathan Castroviejo +32.74
Michal Kwiatkowski +33.51
Nelson Oliveira +37.90
Soren Kragh Andersen +40.73

The top five at the finish is unchanged as Van Emden, Soler and Bond cross the line. 

Live timings suggest Dennis is 54 seconds up on Madsen after 22km, and extending his lead over Dumoulin...

Brandle has lost ground on the climb and is a minute down on Madsen at the top of the climb. 

Kung is losing some ground on the climb. He's still in full aero position but the gradients will hurt the pure specialists. 

Lutsenko is going well. He's fourth quickest so far at the top of the climb. 

Tony Martin hits the foot of the climb. A strong start but this is make or break for his hopes of a medal. 

Bevin has had a great climb. Six seconds down on Madsen at the first checkpoint, he is now 35 seconds to the good.

Jungels hits the top of the climb. He won't be in the mix today. He's 14th fastest so far, 1:38 down on Bevin. 

Dennis is about to catch Castroviejo! The climb has only just started. Unbelievable. 

How demoralising must that be for the Spaniard? He started 90 seconds ahead of Dennis. 

On the lower slopes of the climb Dennis appears to be 1:50 up on clubhouse leader Madsen.

Andersen has been stung by the climb, along with Dowsett and Mullen. 

Tanel Kangert (Estonia) is 9th quickest at the finish line. 

Oliveira flying!

The Portuguese rider sets the fastest time at the top of the climb, six seconds up on Bevin, and catches Kung in the process. 

Here was Madsen on his ride

Here comes Martin to the top of the climb. He's 14 seconds down on Oliveira, having started it around 20 seconds up on the Portuguese. 

Dennis appears to be 2:30 up on Madsen, according to live timings. 

Kwiatkowski sets the new fastest time at the top of the climb. 47:05 for the Pole, which is 16 seconds quicker than Oliveira. 

But the benchmark falls again! Campenaerts, who has absorbed that climb very well indeed, has pushed Kwiatkowski down by 31 seconds. 

Dennis is coming to the top now, though and he looks like he'll have a massive lead at the checkpoint. 

Mathias Brandle finishes his ride in seventh place as it stands. He won't make the top 10 today. 

Dumoulin appears to be well down on Dennis, but it's hard to compare at the moment. The checkpoint at the top will tell us everything. 

Dennis fastest at the top of the climb.

He's a whopping 1:12 up on Campenaerts' benchmark. 

Castroviejo is two minutes down on Dennis, having started 90 seconds ahead. 

Let's see how Dumoulin is going. He's nearly at the checkpoint. 

The live ticker suggest Dumoulin is losing close to half a minute here, but we wait for the checkpoint. 

No, worse!

Dumoulin trails Dennis by 1:01!

He's still in second place provisionally but that's a huge gap. Insurmountable barring accident. 

Wow. We said Dennis might win but we thought it'd be mightily close. He's blowing everyone out of the water here. This is ridiculous.

Top 10 at checkpoint 2 (35km)

DENNIS Rohan - 17:58.95
DUMOULIN Tom +1:01.73
CAMPENAERTS Victor +1:12.24
KWIATKOWSKI Michal +1:43.39
CASTROVIEJO Jonathan +1:58.78
OLIVEIRA Nelson +2:00.21
BEVIN Patrick +2:06.75
MARTIN Tony +2:14.14
KIRYIENKA Vasil +2:32.00
MADSEN Martin Toft +2:42.26
 

There you have it. Dennis is walking it. 

Dennis tucks onto his top tube as he continues to give it everything on this descent. 

Van Garderen faded on the climb and finishes 2:18 down on Bevin's new benchmark at the finish. 

Van Garderen faded on the climb and finishes 2:18 down on Bevin's new benchmark at the finish. 

Bevin posted 01:05:37 at the line. 

Bevin was some 48 seconds quicker than Madsen in the end but it doesn't look like he'll bag a medal. 

Campenaerts is going strongly and live timings suggest he's 1:10 up on Bevin. The Belgian rider might be riding his way to the silver medal here. 

Dennis catches and passes Kiryienka now, who started three minutes ahead of him and is himself on for a top 10 finish. 

Provisional top 10 for Andersen at the line but that won't last long. 

Oliveira comes to the line and sets the new fastest time, 20 seconds faster than Bevin. 

Dumoulin takes a wobble on a tight right-hand bend. He stays upright but this is slipping away from him. 

Tony Martin comes home now and goes second provisionally, 10 seconds down on Oliveira. 

New leader

Kwiatkowski comes home and is 9 seconds quicker than Oliveira. 

But here comes Campenaerts!

The Belgian gives it everything on the home straight and takes the lead by a big margin - 43 seconds to be precise. 

Top five as it stands, but a few key riders set to knock these down. 

Victor Campenaerts (Belgium) - 01:04:24

Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) - 01:05:0

Nelson Oliveira (Portugal) - 01:05:16

Tony Martin (Germany) - 01:05:26

Patrick Bevin (New Zealand) - 01:05:37

It's neck and neck between Dumoulin and Campenaerts. It's for the silver medal, though. 

Dennis is into the flat run-in to the finish and this is about staying upright now. 

Here we go then, what will the damage be?

Dennis sets the best time by a whopping 1:21!

We await Dumoulin for this result to be made official but Rohan Dennis is the new world champion. 

What an extraordinary ride from Dennis. 

Castroviejo crosses the line 2:17 down. 

Dennis smiles as he wheels to a halt, and then lifts his bike up. Dumoulin is yet to finish but Dennis is already celebrating. 

Here comes Dumoulin now and it's still neck-and-neck for silver.

Silver for Dumoulin! By the finest of margins. Bronze goes to Campenaerts. 

Dumoulin is keeled over his bike, head in his hands. 

Dumoulin can't quite believe it. 

Rohan Dennis (Australia) wins the elite men's time trial at the 2018 UCI Road World Championships

Top 10

1 Rohan Dennis (Australia) 1:03:46
2 Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands) 0:01:21
3 Victor Campenaerts (Belgium) 0:00:39
4 Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) 0:01:22
5 Nelson Oliveira (Portugal) 0:01:31
6 Jonathan Castroviejo (Spain) 0:02:18
7 Tony Martin (Germany) 0:01:42
8 Patrick Bevin (New Zealand) 0:01:52
9 Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus) 0:03:08
10 Martin Toft Madsen (Denmark) 0:02:40

"I can't really explain it, it's an amazing feeling," says Dennis. 

"It's a dream come true. I've been chasing this since I was a junior. I'd never won it in any age group so to win my first one in the seniors is pretty special."

More from Dennis

"I was being coached form the car by Brad McGee, and he gave me confidence at the top of the climb. Once Dumoulin was through he told me I was a minute up and he kept me calm. I was considering a bit of a victory salute but I wanted to make sure - you're never sure until Tom crosses the line.

"I knew the power we rode in the TTT, where we lost 19 seconds. I held higher power up the hill than I did in the TTT, and I knew Dumoulin was riding on the front and pushing hard in the TTT, so I had a good idea of what power I needed to hold him. I think it was 35 seconds at bottom and at the top I was fairly confident that I'd at least done the same time as him."

Here's our report page

Rohan Dennis wins time trial world title

Dennis had never won a TT world title at any level before today, and had never even medalled in the elite category, though that can mostly be explained away by bad luck.

After an encouraging first couple of appearances - 12th in Florence in 2013 and 5th in Ponferrada in 2014 - and victory on the opening stage of the Tour de France that year, Dennis went into Richmond 2015 as one of the favourites, but a puncture with 25km to go consigned him to sixth place. At the Olympic Games in 2016 his aero bars broke and he finished 5th, while at the Worlds later that year he admitted he was running on fumes at the end of a long season and could only manage 6th place again. Last year in Bergen, having set the second fastest times at the first two checkpoints, he slipped out in the wet conditions and finished eighth. 

This one must taste sweet.

We have a full gallery of photos in our stage report. 

Rohan Dennis wins time trial world title

That's it from us today. Keep an eye on CN this evening for all the news and reaction from Innsbruck. The junior road races are on the agenda tomorrow. Bye.