2022 UCI Road World Championships Preview

From September 18-25 the 2022 UCI Road World Championships take place in Wollongong, Australia. Here you can find a guide on the dates and schedules of all races that will be taking place in different time zones and how to watch

The events start this Sunday after midnight with the Elite time-trial events. The Women's Elite time-trial will be the first race to take place, set to finish at 04:30 CET, followed by the Men's Elite Time-Trial which will conclude at 09:00. Most Junior events - besides the men's time-trial - will finish around 03:00 CET whilst all other races finish at around 09:00 CET.

This will be the case with the men's under-23 and Elite, and Women's Road Races on the final three days of the event which finishes on Sunday the 25th, where all three races finish at similar time. For cycling fans in North America, you will have to remove 9 to 6 hours to the CET time, depending on where you live.

Men's Elite Road Race

Julian Alaphilippe and Elisa Balsamo will put their titles on the line. The UCI Road World Champions in the Men Elite and Women Elite categories wore their 2021 rainbow jerseys for the last time on the roads of La Vuelta Ciclista a España and the Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta. Many contenders will come to Wollongong to try to take their crowns.

The condition of Alaphilippe, the double defending UCI World Champion, is a source of concern. The Frenchman fell again on Spanish roads, a few months after his serious accident in Liège-Bastogne-Liège. If he still hopes to defend his title in Australia on September 25, Alaphilippe has seen his preparation largely disrupted. He will be assisted within the French team by dark horses such as Romain Bardet or Christophe Laporte.

It’s a green light for the other big favourites. Tadej Pogacar won the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal last Sunday, beating Wout van Aert in the sprint. 

As for Van Aert, already up there in the finale of the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec (4th), the Canadian classics were also reassuring, although the Belgian was not to raise his arms. The big attraction of the last Tour de France is determined to take revenge after several frustrations in the rainbow race. He has also chosen to give up on the time trial to maximize his chances in the road race. But he will also have to fight with his lifelong rival Mathieu van der Poel (NED) and to share leading duties in the Belgian team with the recent winner of La Vuelta, Remco Evenepoel.

Evenepoel will also be one of the big favourites in the Men Elite individual time trial (ITT) on 18 September, along with double winner Filippo Ganna (ITA). The Swiss pair of Stefan Bissegger and Stefan Küng will try to upset the Belgian and the Italian after their recent 1-2 at the European Championships. This will also be the case for Yves Lampaert (BEL), the first yellow jersey of the 2022 Tour de France in Copenhagen.

Elite Men’s Road Race Top Contenders

Wout Van Aert
Remco Evenepoel
Mathieu Van Der Poel
Julian Alaphilippe

Women's Elite Road Race

In the Women Elite, the Dutch will be the big favourites again this year. Annemiek van Vleuten, leader of the UCI Women's WorldTour general classification, will share leadership with Marianne Vos, silver medallist in last year’s UCI Road Worlds, and Demi Vollering. Ellen van Dijk will defend her title in the ITT but with competition from Van Vleuten, UCI World Champion for the specialty in 2017 and 2018. In this event, the main rival for the Oranje is Marlen Reusser; the Swiss is the two-time reigning European Champion.

The road race (September 24) seems more open. The Italians, led by Elisa Balsamo, Elisa Longo Borghini and Silvia Persico, seem capable of challenging the domination of the Netherlands and defending the title they won in Leuven. Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (DEN), Mavi Garcia (ESP), Lotte Kopecky (BEL) or Katarzyna Niewiadoma (POL) make for a strong list of contenders for the rainbow jersey.

The two Women Elite events will also have the particularity of awarding the Under 23 title to the best ranked rider in this class in each of the two races. Here again, a Dutchwoman will start as favourite: Shirin van Anrooij, the European Champion in both the ITT and the road race.

Elite Women’s Road Race Top Contenders

Annemiek van Vleuten
Lotte Kopecky
Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig
Demi Vollering

Elite Time Trials

Both the elite men's and women's categories will tackle a technical and demanding 16.8 kilometre loop twice around Wollongong's city centre, amounting to a total distance of 34.2 kilometres. The route features roughly 30 corners meaning that good bike handling capabilities are going to be crucial to securing a good result here.

Evenepoel will also be one of the big favourites in the Men Elite individual time trial (ITT) on 18 September, along with double winner Filippo Ganna (ITA). The Swiss pair of Stefan Bissegger and Stefan Küng will try to upset the Belgian and the Italian after their recent 1-2 at the European Championships. This will also be the case for Yves Lampaert (BEL), the first yellow jersey of the 2022 Tour de France in Copenhagen.

2022 UCI Road World Championships Schedule