The first wave of road races on the Kigali circuit has produced wild and unpredictable outcomes, and Saturday’s double-header should be no different.
Vollering previews the road course on Thursday. (Photo: Dario Belingheri/Getty Images)
Updated September 26, 2025 04:01PM
The UCI road world championships turn up the volume Saturday with two races featuring the women at center stage.
The junior women race in the morning before the best riders in the world will clash over the challenging Kigali circuit.
The first wave of road races has produced wild and unpredictable outcomes, and Saturday’s double-header should be no different.
With a few top names missing, including two-time defending world champion Lotte Kopecky and Marianne Vos, the women’s elite race could be a bit more wide open.
The top favorites will see a Tour de France Femmes rematch between Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, already a road world champ in 2014, and Demi Vollering, who’s yet to win the stripes.
Other top favorites include Kasia Niewadiadoma, time trial winner Marlen Reusser, and outsider Kim Le Court, who could become Africa’s first world champion. Elisa Longo Borghini and former three-time world champ Anna Van der Breggen are two heavyweights who cannot be overlooked.
The 164.6km race over 11 passages on the brutal circuit will deliver a worthy winner.
In the junior women’s race in the morning, Canada’s Sidney Swierenga lines up as one of the top favorites. Great Britain’s strong duo of Erin Boothman and Arabella Blackburn pack medal potential, and Spain’s Paula Ostiz will be in the mix.
Team USA brings a balanced junior women’s squad with Lidia Cusack, Liliana Edwards, Alexis Jaramillo, and Alyssa Sarkisov on the start line.
For the elite women’s road race, last year’s runner-up Chloé Dygert headlines the squad, but the climb-heavy route could prove too much for her. The demanding course could tilt more in favor of Ruth Edwards.
Day 1 – Sunday, September 21
Women Elite Individual Time Trial: Marlen Reussen
Men Elite Individual Time Trial: Remco Evenepoel
Day 2 – Monday, September 22
Women Under-23 Individual Time Trial: Zoe Bäckstedt
Men Under-23 Individual Time Trial: Jakob Söderqvist
Day 3 – Tuesday, September 23
Women Junior Individual Time Trial: Megan Arens
Men Junior Individual Time Trial: Michiel Mouris
Day 4 – Wednesday, September 24
Mixed Relay Team Time Trial: AustraliaÂ
Day 5 – Thursday, September 25
Women Under-23 Road Race: Célia Gery
Day 6 – Friday, September 26
Men Junior Road Race: Harry Hudson
Men Under-23 Road Race: Lorenzo Finn
Day 7 – Saturday, September 27
08:20 – Women Junior Road Race
12:05 – Women Elite Road Race
Day 8 – Sunday, September 28
09:45 – Men Elite Road Race