2026 World Championships ITT preview: Evenepoel targets history on fast Montréal course

The Belgian faces 39.2 kilometres and 220 metres of climbing on a course designed more for sustained speed than the climbing ability demanded in Kigali last year. That change in terrain gives the specialists behind him a reason to believe this World Championship could be considerably tighter.

For Remco Evenepoel (Belgium), it is also the opening act of a larger ambition. He has made no secret of his desire to leave Montréal with both elite men's rainbow jerseys. First, though, comes the discipline in which he has been almost untouchable since 2023.

Date: Sunday, 20 September
Length: 39.2km
Elevation gain: 220m
Start: 18:45 (CEST) / 12:45 (EDT)
Start times and order: Available here

At 39.2 kilometres with 220 metres of elevation gain, the Montréal course is relatively flat, but it is not a straightforward power test.

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

The route then reaches Île Notre Dame and the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. The Formula One track should be one of the fastest sections of the race, but it is not completely straightforward. A series of bends will reward riders who can carry speed well and avoid repeated accelerations.

After leaving the circuit, the riders head back towards central Montréal. There are more long, fast sections, but also enough corners and changes of direction to disrupt the rhythm.

The final kilometres bring one last complication. The road begins to rise gradually on the approach to Parc Jeanne Mance before kicking up more sharply in the final few hundred metres, where the gradient reaches around six per cent. After such a fast and largely flat effort, judging that final rise could prove important.

Overall, it is a course for the specialists. Sustained power and aerodynamics will be crucial, but handling, pacing and the wind could still create meaningful gaps.

The elite women race on the same 39.2 kilometre course earlier on Sunday, giving the men's teams a useful indication of the conditions before the final starters roll off.

Any discussion of the title has to begin with Remco Evenepoel (Belgium). The defending champion has won the last three editions, in Stirling, Zürich and Kigali, and nobody has ever claimed four consecutive elite men's world time trial titles.

There is little in his 2026 record to suggest that his grip on the discipline has weakened. Evenepoel has started three individual time trials this season and won all three, at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, UAE Tour and Tour de France. His return to racing in Canada has provided another indication of his condition. He won the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec after a long effort at the front, then finished fifth in Montréal two days later.

If anyone is equipped to stop him, it is Filippo Ganna (Italy). The twice world champion finished only twelve seconds behind Evenepoel in 2023 and six seconds behind him in Zürich a year later. Both races showed how close the Italian can get on courses considerably less climbing-heavy than Kigali.

That makes Montréal particularly interesting. Ganna has won four individual time trials in 2026, including the 42 kilometre Giro d'Italia test and the Italian national title. His eleventh place in the Tour de France time trial was a rare disappointment, but Sunday's flatter course is much closer to the type of terrain on which he has traditionally been at his best.

Behind the two established reference points, Stefan Küng (Switzerland) arrives with perhaps the most relevant recent result of anyone in the field. The Swiss rider won the 32.1 kilometre Vuelta a España time trial in Jerez last week, averaging 54.4 kilometres per hour. He then left the Vuelta the following morning, with the World Championships his next major target.

For Küng, Montréal represents another chance to turn years of consistency into a first world title. He has twice been European champion and finished second at the 2022 Worlds, while his comeback from the fractured femur he suffered at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad has gathered momentum rapidly. Before winning in Jerez, he had already taken the final time trial at the Tour de Pologne.

Callum Thornley (Great Britain) can no longer be treated simply as an outsider. The 23-year-old came within three seconds of beating Küng in Jerez during his first Grand Tour, on a fast course that provides a useful reference for what awaits in Montréal. The distance is longer on Sunday, but his Vuelta performance puts Thornley firmly into the conversation behind the leading names.

Britain has another serious option in Ethan Hayter (Great Britain). Hayter won his fourth national time trial title in June, covering a flat 38.4 kilometre course at more than 52 kilometres per hour and beating Connor Swift by a minute and a half. The distance and profile make that a particularly relevant performance for Montréal, while his fourth place at the 2022 World Championships shows he has already been close to a global medal.

Behind them, Mathias Vacek (Czech Republic) is one of the more interesting outsiders. He has made the time trial a major World Championship objective and should suit a course that rewards both power and the ability to handle repeated changes of rhythm.

Brandon McNulty (United States) also arrives in good condition after finishing third at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal, while Paul Seixas (France) continues to develop rapidly against the clock after placing fourth in the Tour de France time trial.

Isaac Del Toro (Mexico) is harder to judge. His victory in Montréal last weekend underlined his form, but Sunday's flatter course presents a very different test.

The absence of Joshua Tarling and 2025 silver medallist Jay Vine opens the race further. Daan Hoole (Netherlands), former world champion Tobias Foss (Norway), Alec Segaert (Belgium), Stefan Bissegger (Switzerland) and Jakob Söderqvist (Sweden) all possess the time trial qualities to take advantage if one of the bigger names misses the mark.