2026 World Championships ITT Women's preview: Can Reusser be challenged?

The elite women's individual time trial is the first race of the entire championship programme, setting off from Avenue du Parc at 09:00 local time. The men use the same course later in the day.

For Reusser, the terrain could hardly be better suited. She won last year's title in Rwanda on a climbing-heavy parcours that did not obviously suit her, and Montréal removes that complication entirely.

Date: Sunday, 20 September
Length: 39.2km
Elevation gain: 220m
Start: 15:00 (CEST) / 09:00 (EDT)
Start times and order: Available here

At 39.2km with 220 metres of elevation, Montréal is a flat course but not a simple one.

From Avenue du Parc the riders head towards Old Montréal and the St Lawrence. The opening section suits the big engines, with long roads where riders can settle into position and build speed. Closer to the river the course becomes more exposed, and wind could play a role.

The route then reaches Île Notre-Dame and the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. The Formula One track should be among the fastest sections of the race, though a series of bends rewards riders who carry speed well rather than repeatedly accelerating out of corners.

After leaving the circuit the riders head back towards central Montréal, with more long, fast sections but enough changes of direction to disrupt a rhythm.

The final kilometres bring one last complication. The road rises gradually on the approach to Parc Jeanne-Mance before kicking up more sharply in the closing few hundred metres, where the gradient reaches around six per cent.

The distance matters as much as the profile. At 39.2km, this is substantially longer than the Chrono Féminin de Gatineau that several contenders used as a final rehearsal on Wednesday, and holding speed and position deep into the effort will count for as much as the opening power.

Marlen Reusser (Switzerland) is the obvious place to start. The defending champion won in Kigali last year on terrain that arguably suited her less than this course, while she has again set the standard against the clock throughout the season. Reusser also raced in Gatineau on Wednesday alongside Swiss teammate Jasmin Liechti, who has taken a significant step forward this year.

On current form, Zoe Bäckstedt (Great Britain) looks the strongest of the challengers. The 21 year old retained her British title, finished second to Reusser in the Tour de Suisse Women time trial and produced another strong showing at the Tour de France Femmes. This will be her first elite World Championships, and she has made the race a major target. Anna Morris fills Britain's second place.

Demi Vollering (Netherlands) leads the Dutch challenge after taking bronze in Kigali behind Reusser and Anna van der Breggen. Van der Breggen has not been selected this year, removing one of last year's three medallists and leaving Vollering as the only returning podium finisher apart from the defending champion.

The Netherlands are still searching for a first title in the event since Ellen van Dijk won in Wollongong in 2022, following earlier victories by Van der Breggen and Annemiek van Vleuten. Lieke Nooijen takes the second Dutch place and is among the riders capable of putting herself in the podium conversation.

Antonia Niedermaier (Germany) and Taylor Knibb (United States) form another strong group of contenders. Knibb has the raw power that should suit this course, while Niedermaier has continued to make progress against the clock throughout 2026.

Also on the start list are Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy), Kristen Faulkner (United States) and Lotte Kopecky (Belgium). Kopecky returns to the World Championships after missing last year's edition, although her time trial performances have not reached their usual level this season.