By Bilal Chalabi
The UCI Road World Championships return to Canada between 20 and 27 September, bringing around 1,000 riders to Montréal for eight days of time trials, road races and the mixed team relay. This will be the first Road World Championships held in Canada since Hamilton hosted the event in 2003. Montréal has an even longer connection with the competition. In 1974, it became the first city outside Europe to stage the championships.The elite men’s road race on 27 September will cover 273.7 kilometres and include 3,803 metres of climbing. Those figures point towards a selective contest suited to strong Classics riders rather than pure sprinters.
The course details give cycling followers at BetTOM plenty to assess before the national teams confirm every role. Riders need the endurance to manage almost 274 kilometres, but they must also retain enough power for repeated attacks on the Mount Royal circuit.
Why is the Montréal route so difficult?
The elite men will begin in Brossard before travelling through several municipalities south of Montréal. After crossing the Samuel De Champlain Bridge, the riders enter a 13.4-kilometre finishing circuit around Mount Royal.
That circuit will be completed 12 times. Each lap contains 269 metres of elevation gain, including the Voie Camillien-Houde, Chemin de la Polytechnique and a rising finish on Avenue du Parc.
Sections of Chemin de la Polytechnique exceed 11 per cent. The climb is short enough for powerful one-day specialists to remain competitive, yet its repetition should gradually weaken heavier riders.
The Avenue du Parc finish adds another tactical problem. A rider who attacks on the final climb must still manage the false flat towards the line. Waiting for a reduced sprint may save energy, but it also risks allowing a stronger climber to escape.
Can Mathieu van der Poel win another rainbow jersey?
Mathieu van der Poel has made the Road World Championships one of his main late-season targets. The Dutch rider will prepare at the Tour de Luxembourg between 16 and 20 September after deciding not to contest the Canadian WorldTour races.
Van der Poel won the elite road title in Glasgow in 2023. He followed that success with bronze in Zürich a year later before missing the 2025 edition in Rwanda, where the climbing demands did not suit his programme.
Montréal appears better matched to his strengths. The route contains enough climbing to remove many sprinters, but it lacks the long mountain passes that would give lighter climbers a clear advantage. Van der Poel can also attack on short, steep gradients and finish quickly if a small group reaches Avenue du Parc together.
The distance may work in his favour. Long races often reward riders who can continue producing power after five or six hours, an area in which Van der Poel has repeatedly excelled during the spring Classics.
His preparation carries some uncertainty. The Tour de Luxembourg ends only seven days before the road race, so the Dutch team will want competitive intensity without excessive fatigue.
How strong is the Belgian team?
Belgium will arrive with two possible leaders in Remco Evenepoel and Wout van Aert. Their different qualities give the team several tactical options.
Evenepoel can attack at distance and turn a small gap into a decisive advantage. He is also expected to target the individual time trial, where he will seek a fourth consecutive world title after winning in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Van Aert offers a stronger option if the road race ends with a reduced group. He has finished second in the elite road race twice, in 2020 and 2023, but has yet to win the rainbow jersey.
Supporting riders such as Tiesj Benoot, Thibau Nys, Quinten Hermans and Maxim Van Gils should help Belgium control breakaways and maintain representation when the leading group becomes smaller.
Managing two leaders can be an advantage if their roles are clear. Van Aert’s presence may discourage rivals from helping to chase Evenepoel, while an early Evenepoel attack could force other nations to use riders before the final lap.
Could Mads Pedersen challenge on this course?
Denmark’s team will be led by Mads Pedersen and Mattias Skjelmose. Pedersen won the world title in Yorkshire in 2019 and remains dangerous in long, difficult races that gradually remove faster sprinters.
The Mount Royal circuit may sit near the upper edge of his climbing ability. Accumulated elevation matters more than any single ascent, and 12 laps leave opposing teams numerous opportunities to raise the pace.
Pedersen’s clearest route may be to conserve energy while teammates cover attacks. If he remains attached to a reduced peloton on the last lap, few surviving riders would want to face him in a sprint.
Skjelmose gives Denmark another option on the climbs. His presence means the team does not need to rely entirely on keeping the race together for Pedersen.
What can Canada expect on home roads?
Canada’s elite men’s team includes Derek Gee-West, Michael Woods, Hugo Houle, Michael Leonard, Pier-André Côté and Nickolas Zukowsky.
Woods is the most obvious option for the steepest sections. He has previously finished on a World Championships podium and has won stages at both the Tour de France and Vuelta a España. His climbing ability should suit Chemin de la Polytechnique, although the length of the race may make positioning difficult.
Gee-West will contest the road race and individual time trial. His general classification experience gives Canada a rider capable of handling sustained climbing, long distances and repeated changes of pace.
Houle adds extensive Grand Tour experience, while Leonard brings younger WorldTour strength. The home team may struggle to control the race against larger European squads, but it has enough depth to place riders in early moves and protect Woods or Gee-West for the closing circuits.
What should viewers watch during the final laps?
Positioning before each climb will matter because repeated accelerations can split the peloton before the gradient reaches its hardest point. Riders caught behind a gap may use considerable energy returning to the lead group.
National teams also operate differently from trade teams. Riders who normally compete together may become opponents, while professional rivals can spend the day working for the same country. Communication and clearly assigned roles are especially important once several nations place riders in a breakaway.
The strongest move may arrive before the final lap. A group containing representatives of Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark could be difficult to chase because those nations would have little reason to contribute behind.
Montréal has produced aggressive WorldTour races on similar roads for years, but the World Championships will bring a longer route and the pressure of a single opportunity to win the rainbow jersey. After 273.7 kilometres, the champion may be decided by one attack on Mount Royal or a few seconds of hesitation among the riders chasing it.
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