Marlen Reusser wins women's elite individual title at road cycling world championships in Montreal

Marlen Reusser of Switzerland successfully defended her title in the women's elite individual time trial at the 2026 UCI Road World Championships in Montreal, with a near-perfect performance. She finished 40.11 seconds ahead of second place to claim the rainbow jersey and gold medal on her 35th birthday.

Great Britain’s Zoe Backstedt earned her first elite World Championship medal, taking silver, while Germany’s Franziska Koch produced a surprising performance to finish third.

Canada’s top finishers included Nadia Gontova, who crossed the line in 19th place in 53:38.11, followed by Olivia Baril in 23rd at 55:11.01.

The men’s elite individual time trial begins around 1 p.m with Cycling Canada sending a star-studded team to represent the nation. The elite men’s road race team includes Michael Woods, Derek Gee, Pier-André Côté, Hugo Houle, Michael Leonard and Nickolas Zukowsky.

Top cyclists from around globe descend on Montreal for road racing world championships

The UCI Road Cycling World Championships are one of the only professional road cycling races outside of the Olympic Games where athletes line up for their nations instead of their professional teams. The event will include more than 1,000 athletes from more than 75 countries. CBC Sports and CBC Gem has full coverage of the event.

The next generation of cycling stars will take to the roads tomorrow, with the junior and under-23 races getting underway.

The competition will continue for eight days, from Sept. 20 through Sept. 27.