The UCI Road World Championships will return to cycling-historic Montreal from September 20 to 27 in 2026, 52 years after Eddy Merckx and Geneviève Gambillon triumphed in the first-ever Road Worlds held outside Europe.
The 2026 UCI Road World Championships will mark the third time the sport's centrepiece event is held in Canada, having also taken place in Hamilton in 2003.
The 2026 Championships will also be the city’s largest sporting event since the 1976 Olympic Games, when Bert Johansson of Sweden won the elite men's road race - although there was no equivalent event for women until 1989.
The 13 official routes for the 2026 UCI Road World Championships were unveiled on Friday by the organising committee during the currently ongoing World Championships in Rwanda.
Next year nearly 1,000 racers across junior, under-23 and elite categories will take part in the time trials, road races, and mixed relay events.
The highlight of the road races will be Mount Royal, with its demanding climb position along a 13.4km circuit.
The two elite road races - 180km for the elite women and 273.2km for the elite men - will start in Brossard, Montérégie, before passing through seven other municipalities in the region and crossing the Samuel-De-Champlain Bridge to reach the final Mount Royal circuit.
Riders will face several major challenges, including the Camillien-Houde climb (2.3 km at a 6.2% average gradient), the Polytechnique climb with sections exceeding 11%, and the uphill false flat on Parc Avenue, which will serve as the finish line for all 13 events.
The elite women and elite men will compete in the same individual time trials that will take on the same 39.9km circuit around Montréal, featuring the Gilles-Villeneuve Circuit and Parc Jean-Drapeau, before crossing the Concorde Bridge into the city centre.
Elite women's individual time trial, 39.9km
The elite women's individual time trial will kick off the 2026 UCI Road World Championships with a 39.9km route in Montreal. The route will feature 195m of elevation.
The technical but mostly flat route will begin in Montreal and race through the city streets and along the famed St Lawrence River, cross the Samuel-De-Champlain Bridge, orbit the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve - a famous motor-racing circuit that hosts the annual Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix - then cross back over the Concorde Bridge before returning to the finish line.
Elite men's individual time trial, 39.9km
The elite men's individual time trial will the elite women's with the same 39.9km route in Montreal. The route will feature 195m of elevation.
The technical but mostly flat route will begin in Montreal and race through the city streets and along the famed St Lawrence River, cross the Samuel-De-Champlain Bridge, orbit the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve - a famous motor-racing circuit that hosts the annual Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix - then cross back over the Concorde Bridge before returning to the finish line.
Elite women's road race, 180km
The elite women's route is also steeped in history, having been the site of the former Montreal World Cup.
The peloton will compete for 180km and a total elevation gain of 2,502 metres. The race will start in Bossard-Montérégie, before passing through seven other municipalities in the region on one large 72,8km opening loop. They will then cross the Samuel-De-Champlain Bridge to reach the final Mount Royal circuit.
The elite women will complete eight laps of the 13.4km, facing the Camillien-Houde climb (2.3km at a 6.2% average gradient to the top of Mount Royal), the Polytechnique climb with sections exceeding 11%, and the uphill false flat on Parc Avenue.
Elite men's road race, 273.2km
The elite men's route is also steeped in history, having been the site of the current Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal, one of two WorldTour races held in the province alongside the Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec.
The peloton will compete for 273.2km and a total elevation gain of 3,720. The race will also start in Bossard-Montérégie, before passing through seven other municipalities in the region on one large 112,4km opening loop. They will then cross the Samuel-De-Champlain Bridge to reach the final Mount Royal circuit.
The elite men will complete 12 laps of the 13.4km, facing the Camillien-Houde climb (2.3km at a 6.2% average gradient to the top of Mount Royal), the Polytechnique climb with sections exceeding 11%, and the uphill false flat on Parc Avenue.
