UCI Road World Championships


The UCI Road World Championships are the annual world championships for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale. The UCI Road World Championships consist of events for road race and individual time trial, and as of 2019, a mixed team relay.

Events

All the world championship events are ridden by national teams, not trade teams such as in most other major races. The winner of each category is entitled to wear the rainbow jersey in races of that category until the next championships.
It currently includes the following championships:
  • Elite Men's road race
  • Elite Men's time trial
  • Under-23 Men's road race
  • Under-23 Men's time trial
  • Junior Men's road race
  • Junior Men's time trial
  • Elite Women's road race
  • Elite Women's time trial
  • Under-23 Women's road race
  • Under-23 Women's time trial
  • Junior Women's road race
  • Junior Women's time trial
  • Mixed team relay
Former events:
  • Men's amateur road race
  • Men's team time trial
  • Women's team time trial

    History

The first world championships took place in 1921, though the only event that was contested was the men's road race for amateurs. The first professional world championship took place in July 1927 at the Nürburgring in Germany where Italian Alfredo Binda won the professional men's race and Belgian Jean Aerts won the men's amateur race. The women's road race was introduced in 1958. A men's team time trial, contested by national teams, was introduced in 1962. Beginning in 1972, the team time trial was discontinued in Olympic years only. Individual time trials in all categories were added in 1994, which was also the last year for the original incarnation of the men's team time trial. In 2012, the men's team time trial was reinstated, and a women's team time trial added to the program; both were contested by trade teams. In 2019, the team time trial events for men and women were replaced by a mixed relay team time trial. In 2020, no under-23 or junior races were contested at the Championships owing to the COVID-19 pandemic; however, under-23 riders were eligible to compete in the elite races.
Until 1995, there were separate races for male professional and amateur riders. In 1996, the amateur category was replaced with a category for men under-23 years old, with the professional category becoming an open category.
Since 1995 until 2022, the event has been held towards the end of the European season in late September, usually following the Vuelta a España. Before that, the event had always been a summer race, held in late August or the first week of September. An exception to this was in 2023, when it was held in August as part of a combined multi-disciplinary UCI Cycling World Championships, intended to be held every four years.
The world championships are located in a different city or region every year. The event can be held over a relatively flat course which, in the case of the road race, favors cycling sprinters or a hilly course which favors a climbing specialist or all-rounder. In each case, the latter part of course is usually held on a circuit, of which the riders complete multiple laps.
The world championship road race and two of the three Grand Tours form the Triple Crown of Cycling.

Editions

Note: Not held from 1939 to 1945 because of World War II.

Hosts

TimesNations
14
11
10
9
8 -
7
6
5
3
2 - - -
1 - - - - - - - -

All medals

Medal table includes only medals achieved in senior events. Mixed nation team events such as the Team Time Trial from 2012 to 2018 are excluded.

Countries