World Cycling Championships 2026: Route Road Race – women
Published: 17 September
Race type: tough hilly race
Favourites: climbers, puncheurs
Weather: mainly sunny
The riders clip into their pedals in Brossard and, via a flat loop of just over 60 kilometres, reach the finishing circuit in Montreal. Just before joining the circuit, they face a 2.9-kilometre climb averaging 4.1%.
The Montreal circuit is 12.3 kilometres long and features 269 metres of elevation gain on each lap. There are no long climbs; the elevation gains comes from short, sharp bursts of climbing, which starts straight after the finish line on Avenue du Parc. The riders take a left-hand turn and there is the Côte Camillien-Houde. The 1.67-kilometre climb averages 7.4% as it winds its way through Parc du Mont-Royal, and after the descent and three sharp bends, the Côte de la Polytechnique comes into view. This is a 780-metre climb averaging 6%, with a 200-metre section at 11%.
After a descent featuring a few sharp corners, the riders emerge onto the long, straight Boulevard Édouard-Montpetit before the Avenue Pagnuelo offers more climbing: 534 metres at 7.5%. Once over the top, there is a 500-metre flat section before the riders descend at full speed towards the Avenue du Parc. The finishing straight rises at an average gradient of 4% over the final 560 metres to the line.
Following the flat approach from Brossard, the riders complete the Montreal circuit eight times in full.
Last year, the women's road race at the World Championships in Kigali, Rwanda, covered 164.6 kilometres and featured 3,350 metres of elevation gain. While riders such as Demi Vollering, Kasia Niewiadoma and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot had been expected to contend for the rainbow jersey, the battle for the title came down to Mavi García, Niamh Fisher-Black and Magdeleine Vallieres. The Canadian dropped her companions on the final climb of the day and soloed to victory. Fisher-Black crossed the finish line 23 seconds later in second, while García claimed bronze 27 seconds behind the winner.
Fancy riding the route yourself? Download GPX road race women, 2026 World.
The World Championship road race starts at 9:00 and is scheduled to finish around 14:10 - both local times (EDT).
Weather conditions:
It is expected to be mainly sunny as the women contest the World Championship road race. Temperatures will be around 18°C, with winds of 16 km/h.
We will update this forecast in the days leading up to the start. For the current weather conditions along the course, see the interactive weather map in the slideshow below.
2026 UCI Road World Championships, Montreal - road race women: routes, profiles, videos
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