Magdeleine Valli\u00e8res Mill has had a year to get used to being world champion.<\/p>\n
Now she gets to defend the title on home roads.<\/p>\n
The 25-year-old stunned (some) of the cycling world in Rwanda last September, riding clear in the final kilometres to win the elite women\u2019s road race. This time, there will be no unfamiliar roads or a long trip to Africa. The finish will come on Montreal\u2019s Mount Royal, where Valli\u00e8res Mill has been riding since she was a junior.<\/p>\n
The 2025 win in Rwanda<\/p>\n
And it should be noted, those who knew her, weren\u2019t shocked. Her teammates, and followers of Canadian Cycling Magazine knew that MVM was, and is, something special.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople were calling it a huge surprise, but I wasn\u2019t surprised. I knew she could do it,\u201d fellow pro \u00c9milie Fortin said. \u201cThat\u2019s why I put my name forward to ride those worlds. I wanted to be there to help a Canadian make history. We knew she was capable, and we were ready to give our races for her.\u201d<\/p>\n
And now, in a month\u2019s time, Valli\u00e8res Mill will head home to try and do it again. The elite, U23 and junior men\u2019s and women\u2019s teams have been announced, but the full women\u2019s team will be announced shortly.<\/p>\n
Cycling Canada had to factor in the recent Tour de France Femmes in its decision. But, yeah, it\u2019s kinda a fait accompli that she\u2019ll be on the squad.<\/p>\n
Racing for it all at home<\/p>\n
\u201cJust doing the world championships at home is already a dream, but defending your title is an even bigger one,\u201d she said Wednesday during a press conference from her home base in Andorra.<\/p>\n
The Sherbrooke, Que. native grew up only an hour and a half away from Montreal and comes from a cycling family. Her parents even owned a bike shop at one point.<\/p>\n
She remembers racing up Camillien-Houde as a young rider at the Jeux du Qu\u00e9bec, including one early effort with recently retired Canadian Simone Boilard.<\/p>\n
Now she\u2019ll tackle the climb eight times as part of the world championship course.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really is a chance of a lifetime to defend this title at home,\u201d Valli\u00e8res Mill said.
After her breakthrough in Kigali, Valli\u00e8res Mill will have the world champion\u2019s jersey on her back\u2014and a home crowd watching to see whether she can do it again.<\/p>\n
She admits that when she won, she was (in theory) an underdog, but she\u2019s excited to return as the favourite.<\/p>\n
On strategy at the road worlds<\/p>\n