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<\/p>\nIts mountainous backdrop has led to Rwanda being described as the land of a thousand hills, and the UCI World Championships men\u2019s road race will feature five of these hills on multiple occasions for no fewer than 35 ascents.<\/p>\n
The heady combination of climbing, cobbles and high altitude have earned these first African Worlds the title of “hardest World Championships ever” \u2013 and it\u2019s hard to disagree. The total elevation of 5,475 metres is more than even the hilly Imola course from 2020, while the race plays out at an altitude between 1,493 and 1,771 metres throughout its undulating 267.5km parcours.<\/p>\n
The race commences with nine loops of the 13.6km city circuit in Kigali that includes the Cote de Kigali Golf (0.8km at 8.1%) and the cobbled Cote de Kimihurura (1.3km at 6.3%).<\/p>\n
This is followed by one lap of the 42.5km extension circuit through the countryside outside Kigali. It includes the same two climbs either side of the Cote de Peage (1.8km at 5.9%), Mont Kigali (5.6km at 6.9%) and the infamous cobblestone Mur de Kigali (0.4km at 11%).<\/p>\n
The final phase of the race plays out over six more laps of the city circuit, bringing the climb count up to 35 ahead of the finish, where the final 900 metres rises at over 4% to the line.<\/p>\n
Rwandan national coach David Louvet says he won\u2019t be surprised if only twenty riders reached the finish, while former Dutch pro Bram Tankink has compared the route to a combination of the Tour of Flanders and Liege-Bastogne-Liege \u2013 “but then harder, harder than most people think.”<\/p>\n
“The climbs will be very decisive, especially the ability to recover fast \u2013 because you have steep climbs and then only short downhills, and there are no flat parts, so the time to recover is very, very small,” says Germany\u2019s Simon Geschke, who retired last year.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UCI Road World Championships Kigali 2025: men’s road race profile<\/p>\n
Image credit: From Official Website<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the 2017 Giro champion Tom Dumoulin, now a pundit for Dutch TV, describes the “beautiful course” as “very hard”. Dumoulin adds: “It\u2019s very tough winning here in Kigali, especially the last few kilometres with the cobbled climb, which is very, very difficult. A good climber will win the race.”<\/p>\n
There are few better climbers than Tadej Pogacar, which is why the defending champion from Slovenia is the bookmakers\u2019 favourite to double up in Rwanda.<\/p>\n
Such is the calibre of the field that many big name riders fail to make the cut for our top 10 ranked stars. <\/p>\n
Eritrea\u2019s Biniam Girmay, for instance, will have the quasi-home support \u2013 and the tantalising prospect of an African rider winning the first ever Worlds in Africa is the stuff of dreams. But such is the demanding nature of the course, Girmay has ruled himself out of being capable of contesting the victory.<\/p>\n
Colombia\u2019s Egan Bernal completed his grand slam of Grand Tour stage wins at the Vuelta, but three tough weeks in Spain looked to have taken their toll, and without a strong team to fall back on, Bernal could struggle. His trade team-mate Thymen Arensman excelled at the Tour with two stage wins, but he notoriously struggles in severe heat, plus he tore a glute at the Tour of Britain.<\/p>\n
Swiss duo Marc Hirschi and Jan Christen perhaps don\u2019t have the climbing pedigree to be a factor, while Spain\u2019s Marc Soler will surely perform a support role after his Vuelta exploits. <\/p>\n
Like Soler, Italy\u2019s Giulio Pellizzari went deep \u2013 perhaps too deep \u2013 at the Vuelta, while, for all their attacking gusto at the Tour, the American Quinn Simmons and Australia\u2019s Michael Storer could struggle with the succession of peaks.<\/p>\n
A surprise fourth at the Tour de France, Britain\u2019s Oscar Onley could wilt in the heat, while Denmark\u2019s Mattias Skjelmose may also toil in the extreme conditions. Belgium\u2019s Cian Uijtdebroeks is riding back to his best form, but this course will surely be too much given his recent travails, while such a tough parcours comes a few years too early for France\u2019s promising star of the future, Paul Seixas, and a few years too late for compatriot Pavel Sivakov.<\/p>\n
Australia\u2019s Jay Vine excelled at the Vuelta but his priority may well be the men\u2019s time trial in Rwanda, while Slovenia\u2019s Primoz Roglic could find himself in the employ of the big favourite. Let\u2019s now reveal the top 10, in reverse order.<\/p>\n
10. Giulio Ciccone (Italy)<\/p>\n
Spearheading a strong Italian team, Ciccone \u2013 perhaps intentionally \u2013 tapered his performances at the Vuelta, unlike his namesake Giulio Pellizzari, who took a maiden pro win in the final week and was pushing for the white jersey all the way to Madrid.<\/p>\n
Ciccone\u2019s win in the Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa in August showed that he can be competitive in hilly one-day races, and while he won\u2019t start as one of the main contenders, a slow, attritional race could suit him.<\/p>\n
9. Ben Healy (Ireland)<\/p>\n
The 25-year-old has not ridden much since he cracked the top 10 in the Tour de France, but a return to racing at the Tour de Luxembourg will have put some race kilometres into his legs.<\/p>\n
Healy\u2019s staying power in the hills will serve him well in Rwanda, as will his ability to sniff out a move and get in the break. If it comes to a showdown between the favourites, don\u2019t expect Healy to stand much of a chance. <\/p>\n
But if he can get in a move that goes the distance \u2013 perhaps alongside his regular Tour partners in crime Quinn Simmons and Michael Storer \u2013 then who knows?<\/p>\n
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Healy pulls off ‘Tour de France masterpiece’ to win Stage 6 solo<\/p>\n
Video credit: TNT Sports<\/p>\n
8. Jai Hindley (Australia)<\/p>\n
The 29-year-old finished the Vuelta very strongly and pushed Tom Pidcock all the way for that third spot on the podium. A consistent rider with staying power in the mountains, Hindley has never won a one-day race, but will benefit from a strong Australian team around him that includes the likes of Storer, Jay Vine and Michael Matthews.<\/p>\n
7. Julian Alaphilippe (France)<\/p>\n
The swashbuckling Frenchman first became World Champion on that hilly course around Imola in 2020, doubling up a year later in Leuven. His stock has admittedly plummeted since his days in the rainbow bands, but Alaphilippe\u2019s recent maiden win for Tudor Pro Cycling \u2013 in the GP de Quebec \u2013 showcased the 33-year-old puncheur\u2019s canny race-craft and timeless tenacity.<\/p>\n
Alaphilippe will benefit from a strong French blend of climbers and rouleurs around him \u2013 and should it all prove too much climbing for the veteran former double World Champion, then the French could always pivot to a pure climber in the mould of Valentin Paret-Peintre, victor on the Ventoux in July.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
Highlights: Pogacar returns and Alaphilippe victorious in Grand Prix de Quebec<\/p>\n
Video credit: TNT Sports<\/p>\n
6. Richard Carapaz (Ecuador)<\/p>\n
One rider who won\u2019t mind operating at 1,500m is someone who was born and raised at twice that altitude. Underestimated in Tokyo when he soloed to Olympic glory in 2021, Carapaz can always pose a threat in these kinds of unpredictable one-off races.<\/p>\n
A falling-out with compatriot Jhonatan Narvaez means the latter will not ride in support of the 32-year-old, who was criticised for his negative tactics on the Colle delle Finestre during the Giro, where he ultimately finished third despite pushing Isaac del Toro for the pink jersey before Simon Yates\u2019s smash-and-grab.<\/p>\n
Carapaz is yet to pick up a medal in the Worlds, but that could change if he turns up and puts in a performance in Kigali.<\/p>\n
5. Juan Ayuso (Spain)<\/p>\n
Talking of turning up, it remains to be seen which incarnation of Ayuso we will see on this super-tough course. Will it be the Ayuso who soloed to two mountaintop wins in the Vuelta, or the Ayuso who dropped like a stone on so many of the other climbs when asked to ride in the service of others?<\/p>\n
It might all hinge on the role the 23-year-old plays for Spain. On paper, he looks to be the undisputed leader \u2013 so, provided everyone pulls for him, and Ayuso is on one of his good days, then we could see the kind of performance that have made Lidl-Trek so keen to snap him up for 2026 now that his contract at UAE has been torn up.<\/p>\n
That said, we could just as well see the kind of performance that justifies UAE\u2019s decision to rip up that contract in the first place.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
Ayuso delivers ‘classy’ victory on Stage 7 – ‘Undiluted determination’<\/p>\n
Video credit: TNT Sports<\/p>\n
4. Remco Evenepoel (Belgium)<\/p>\n
The 25-year-old\u2019s priority will be the defence of his time trial crown. But whatever happens in the 40.6km race against the clock one week earlier could affect how Evenepoel approaches this road race.<\/p>\n
A victory in the ITT may give Evenepoel the belief that he\u2019s capable of beating Pogacar, the man who has now twice humbled him at the Tour. A loss in the ITT, on the other hand, could provide the spark that propels Evenepoel to turn things round and win back the road race World title he conceded last year to his Slovenian rival.<\/p>\n
Evenepoel proved over the cobbled hills of Paris that he\u2019s capable of doing the double at the Olympics \u2013 can he now replicate that on the dusty cobbles of Kigali? He\u2019ll certainly have a strong Belgian team behind him \u2013 but will he have the legs?<\/p>\n
3. Tom Pidcock (Great Britain)<\/p>\n
A one-day race that blends both Flanders and Liege should be right up Pidcock\u2019s street, especially after his breakthrough podium at the Vuelta. The 26-year-old has the bike-handling to cope on the cobbles and dusty roads of Kigali, plus he\u2019s one for the big occasions \u2013 as his multiple World and Olympic titles off the road can attest.<\/p>\n
Pidcock has the form, the belief and the attributes to do well in Rwanda, surrounded by a solid GB team that includes Oscar Onley, James Knox and Fred Wright.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
‘I’m super proud of myself’ – Pidcock on maiden Grand Tour podium<\/p>\n
Video credit: TNT Sports<\/p>\n
2. Isaac del Toro (Mexico)<\/p>\n
Fewer riders are on as hot a streak as the 21-year-old Mexican, who comes to the Worlds having won four out of the five Italian one-day classics that he rode during the second week of September. Only his trade team-mate Pogacar has more wins this season than Del Toro\u2019s 13, setting up a tantalising tete-a-tete between the two UAE stalwarts in Rwanda.<\/p>\n
Del Toro may have come up short in the Giro, but he would have learned a lot from his eleventh-hour relinquishing of the pink jersey. Since then, he has shown what a force he is in hilly one-day races. <\/p>\n
If Pogacar is on an off day, he could be in the best position to profit. That said, Del Toro will be handicapped by his relative inexperience and by having just two Mexican team-mates \u2013 although the popular youngster may find allies in some of his trade team colleagues.<\/p>\n
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slovenia)<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
Tadej Pogacar<\/p>\n
Image credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Everything \u2013 most notably the route, his experience and his form \u2013 points towards the Slovenian soloing to another triumph on the global stage. Pogacar has proved himself peerless in the peloton in the mountains and on hard, hilly terrain.<\/p>\n
Not only does he have the legs, skillset, experience and tactical nous to fall back on, he has one of the strongest teams behind him, with Slovenia\u2019s nine-man squad also featuring the likes of Roglic, Matej Mohoric and Pogacar\u2019s domestic team-mate Domen Novak.<\/p>\n
It will take something special for Pogacar not to win the Kigali 2025 World Championships. But the unprecedented nature of these Worlds \u2013 the first on African soil, held in stifling heat, at altitude and with hundreds of thousands lining the unfamiliar roads \u2013 could pose a curveball that even thwarts the best in the business.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s for this reason that we\u2019ll all be glued to our screens for the men\u2019s road race. For while Pogacar remains the outright favourite, we could also witness a glorious surprise in Kigali.<\/p>\n