Dates: 21-28 September 2025
Events: 13
Location: Kigali, Rwanda
TV Coverage: TNT/Discovery+, BBC (UK), FloBikes (US and Canada), Stan (YouTube)
Official website: www.ucikigali2025.rw/
The UCI Road World Championships takes place in Kigali, Rwanda in 2025, the first time the event has taken place in Africa. 13 world titles will be awarded throughout the week as men's and women's events for juniors, and under-23 riders run alongside the elite men and women.
World champions are crowned in time trials, races against the clock, and in one-day road races, and riders race in national teams, as opposed to their trade teams.
This is the 98th edition of the UCI Road Worlds and will be one for the climbers. The men's and women's road races feature more climbing than ever before, as the pelotons tackle circuitous routes with 5,475m and 3,350m of climbing respectively. There are no para-cycling events this year, this having already taken place in Ronse, Belgium.
The elite women kick off proceedings on Sunday, 21 September in the individual time trial. Defending champion Grace Brown (Aus) will not be present as she retired at the end of 2024, meaning 2023 champion Chloe Dygert (USA) is likely to line up as favourite, along with Demi Vollering (Ned). The men's race takes place in the afternoon where Remco Evenepoel (Bel) will look to defend his title, against Tadej Pogačar (Slo).
The junior, under-23 and mixed relay time trials follow in the week, before the road races begin, ending with the elite women on Saturday, 27 September, and the elite men on Sunday, 28 September.
Many prominent riders have said they will not be travelling to Rwanda to compete, including 2023 World Champion Mathieu van der Poel and double world champion Lotte Kopecky, citing a a focus on the MTB Worlds and lack of form respectively. The Netherlands announced earlier this year that they will not send any junior or under-23 riders due to cost, and the USA is only sending a small team.
Safety concerns have been raised throughout the year as armed conflict is taking place on the countries border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, however when questioned earlier this year a Rwandan spokesperson said 'everything was fine.' and the conflict has not spilled into Rwanda, despite human rights groups confirming the governments involvement.
Scroll down to read more about the main contenders and routes they'll be riding this year. Read our guide on how to watch the Worlds here. If you want to find out more about what the Worlds actually are, read our FAQ guide.
Date |
Event |
Time (local - subject to change) |
Distance |
Elevation |
Sunday 21 September |
Women's elite individual time trial |
10:10 - 12:55 |
31.2km |
460m |
Men's elite individual time trial |
13:45 - 16:50 |
40.6km |
680m |
|
Monday 22 September |
Women's under-23 individual time trial |
10:35 - 12:45 |
22.6km |
350m |
Men's under-23 individual time trial |
13:35 - 16:30 |
31.2km |
460m |
|
Tuesday 23 September |
Women's junior individual time trial |
10:45 - 12:45 |
18.3km |
225m |
Men's junior individual time trial |
14:00 - 16:30 |
22.6km |
350m |
|
Wednesday 24 September |
Mixed relay team time trial |
12:30 - 17:00 |
41.8km |
740m |
Thursday 25 September |
Women's under-23 road race |
13:05 - 16:30 |
119.3km |
2,435m |
Friday 26 September |
Men's junior road race |
08:00 - 11:15 |
119.3km |
2,435m |
Men's under-23 road race |
12:00 - 16:25 |
164.6km |
3,350m |
|
Saturday 27 September |
Women's junior road race |
08:20 - 10:40 |
74km |
1,520m |
Women's elite road race |
12:05 - 16:45 |
164.6km |
3,350m |
|
Sunday 28 September |
Men's elite road race |
09:45 - 16:45 |
267.5km |
5,475m |
Contenders: Elite men's and women's individual time trials
Remco Evenepoel
Belgium | 25
Aiming for this third TT world title on the bounce, you'd be brave to bet against the rider with the most aerodynamic TT position in the men's peloton. Evenepoel doesn't put out as many watts as the likes of 2021 world champ Filippo Ganna but the Belgian creates a much smaller shape with which to punch through the air. Evenepoel was in action at the recent Tour of Britain after pulling out of the Tour de France and away from his Soudal team - he is moving to Red Bull Bora Hansgrohe for 2026 onwards - he will be focusing his training on the world champs. Expect him to be in the running for the road race too.
Chloé Dygert
USA | 28
A solid start to the year tailed off for the American as she failed to finish both the Vuelta España Femenina and the Tour de France Femmes. A social media post with references to suffering abuse raised question marks over her wellbeing and motivation to ride, but the two time champion often spends time at home, away from the European scene, where she seems to thrive as she prepares for competition away from the spotlight and stress of the racing scene. She hasn't won an individual TT since Glasgow 2023, but don't let that sway you, if she has time to focus on her position and training she will be a threat. The technical nature of the course could be her main challenge.
Filippo Ganna
Italy | 29
Crashing out on day one of the Tour de France would have been a huge blow for the Italian this July, but he's bounced back at the Vuelta, winning the time trial on stage 10 and placing second on three other stages. He is clearly enjoying a good run of form. He'll need that if he's to beat Evenepoel. Ganna looked set to dominate TT racing when he won the title in 2020 and 2021, but the emergence of Evenepoel has knocked the Italian down the steps of the podium. If he comes out of the Vuelta with good form he has every chance of taking back that title.
Anna Henderson
Great Britain | 26
Always reliable in a TT, Henderson proved at the Paris Olympics what she could achieve given the time and motivation to focus her training. A silver medal behind the flying Grace Brown was her best TT result to date and one that elevated her to TT contender status. She helped guide her team to a TTT win on the opening stage of the Vuelta España Femenina and has performed solidly in one-day road races and TTs throughout the season. Unshackled from her role as domestique at Lidl-Trek, Henderson has every chance of challenging for a medal in Rwanda. Potentially in the road race as well.
Time trial race routes
All the time trials share the same basic route, starting at the BK Arena and finishing at the Kigali Convention Centre, but vary in length and altitude. The elite men's TT is the longest at 40.6km, while the elite women race 31.2km. The under-23 men share the same course as the elite women, before the junior men and women, and mixed relay TTT have slightly different routes.
Almost all feature the Côte de Nyanza and the Côte de Kimihurura, and also a cobbled section.
Read our full TT route guide here.
Contenders: Men's and women's elite road races
In the women's elite road race 24 teams have qualified places, with five nations - France, Italy, Netherlands, Poland and Switzerland - earning seven spots, while the next ten nations have qualified six spots. Hosts Rwanda have four. Despite having six places, Great Britain will not field any riders in the elite women's race, instead focusing their attention on the under-23 race. Anna Henderson will ride the time trial.
51 nations and the neutral riders from Russia will start the men's race, with ten nations having qualified the full quota of eight riders.
Tadej Pogačar
Slovenia | 26
The defending champion will start as favourite, as he does for any race he starts. The Slovenian has been as close to ubeatable this year as any rider has ever been with seemingly comfortable victories at the Tour de France, Tour of Flanders, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and Strade Bianche. He won all three stage races he started this year, and hasn't finished worse than third in any of the one-day events. The only question mark hanging over him is his motivation. He finished the Tour looking and sounding exhausted, and even questioned how long he would continue racing.
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot
France | 33
The Frenchwoman's return to road racing in 2025 has been nothing short of spectacular. An early win at Paris-Roubaix was a good start although as the race can be something of a lottery, was not taken as a sign of things to come. But then, at the Tour de France Femmes she played her joker. Biding her time until the race hit the mountains and making her move in a pre planned attack that worked wonders. She rode clear of the peloton and left Demi Vollering in her wake. The two biggest races on teh women's calendar, and two wins for Ferrand-Prévot. With a strike rate like that, few will bet against her in Kigali, especially as the route favours the climbers.
Ben Healy
Ireland | 25
If ever there was a race that suits the Irishman's style of road racing, it's the world championships. Run with smaller teams there is less control in the bunch, meaning riders have to race more on instinct; sniffing out the right move, at the right time, and then riding to their advantages. Although diminutive Healy can't climb with the likes of Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard, he excels on tougher routes as he knows how to best use his abilities. He made the final selection of riders chasing Pogačar in Zurich last year but lacked the power in the finale. But now, with another year's racing in his legs, and a breakthrough ride at the Tour de France, he'll be in a much better position after six hours of riding.
Demi Vollering
Netherlands | 28
Throughout the first half of the year, Demi Vollering was the rider to beat, racking up wins at stage race after stage race. But then at the Tour de France Femmes, her main goal, she was no match for Ferrand-Prévot. The two riders will start as favourites in Kigali, with Vollering likely to be enjoying the backing of a slightly stronger team. But that can confuse matters. The Dutch are so strong in international events that other nations sometimes look to them to do all the work. If they don't acquiesce, it can hand the advantage to a breakaway group. Vollering's climbing prowess means she can find herself at the front of the race as everyone else drops away, but after being beaten in France, she'll be taking nothing for granted. Expect her to challenge in the TT as well.
Others to watch
Tom Pidcock is likely to lead the British team in Rwanda, fresh from his first GC bid at a Grand Tour. Three stage wins through the spring and early summer isn't the level we usually expect of the 26-year-old, but his Vuelta challenge represents a significant step up for him. If he can recover well, and hold his form, he should be in the mix. He'll be supported by Oscar Onley, who, while having no one-day race results behind him, emerged as one of the best climbers in the world at the Tour de France. The Italian men's team will likely be led by Giulio Ciccone as the Lidl-Trek rider has excelled in the hilly one-day classics this year. Remco Evenelpoel will lead the Belgium team in the absence of Wout van Aert, although his focus will no doubt be the individual time trial. France are leaving it late to name their team, but will likely call on Tour hero Kevin Vauquelin and climber Lenny Martinez. Don't rule out Julian Alaphilippe either. He may not be at the level he was some time ago, but his win at the GP de Québec last week along with his experience makes him a rider to watch, especially in a less controlled race.
In the women's race it will once again be all eyes on the Dutch with Marianne Vos, Anna van der Breggen and Pauliena Rooijakkers all joining Vollering in the famous orange kit. The expectation is often on them to do the lions share of the work, something they don't always feel the need to do. Kasia Niewiadoma is set to lead the Polish team with Kim Pienaar, Marien Reusser and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig all taking leadership roles for their nations. Expect a race with far less control - and therefore far more entertaining - as few teams will have the strength in depth to take control over such a tough course.
Road race routes
Men's and Women's Elite road race
If you thought that Zürich’s World Championships road race was hilly, think again. As Africa hosts the event for the first time, Kigali brings an incredibly climb-heavy course to the table. With 5,475m of elevation over 267.5km in the elite men’s, it is the hilliest road race since Sallanches in 1980, and the only time over 5,000m of climbing has been tackled in the 21st century. Think less typical road race, and more Giro d’Italia epic mountain day.
Similarly, the elite women’s race officially has 3,350m of elevation, the most of any Worlds road race in the professional era.
All of this will be done at altitude, too, with Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, 1,567 metres above sea level, higher than the capital of Andorra, where many pro cyclists live. It is a World Championships made for climbers.
The road races do not leave the capital, which is likely to do with the logistics of taking the world’s best riders to a developing country; while the Tour du Rwanda makes a habit of travelling around, the best roads, relaid for such an occasion, are in Kigali.
