But on the podium, Holmgren herself looked to be fighting back tears. Yes, she had won silver in the under-23 women\u2019s road race<\/a> at a home World Championships, but she had come for gold.<\/p>\n Latest Videos FromCycling Weekly<\/p>\n After an attritional 10 laps around the challenging Montr\u00e9al circuit, the race came down to a two-up sprint with Slovakia\u2019s Vikt\u00f3ria Chlado\u0148ov\u00e1, last year\u2019s runner-up, reaching the line first. From the small chase, Belgium\u2019s Fleur Moors won the sprint for bronze 33 seconds later, ahead of Switzerland\u2019s Mara Winter and Australia\u2019s Talia Appleton.<\/p>\n The repetitive 134km\/83.3-mile course<\/a> packed a serious punch with 2,690 metres\/8,825 feet of climbing, gradually wearing down the field. Slovakia raced a smart race with a rider in the break at all times. Sofia Ungerov\u00e1 did a lot of the work for the country, staying out front with Finland’s Wilma Antila for six laps. The breakaway was finally caught when, with 31 kilometres remaining, Chlado\u0148ov\u00e1, Holmgren and Moors made the decisive move.<\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n Homgren did a lot of work and even tried to shed her breakaway companion but Chlado\u0148ov\u00e1 held firm, surviving the Canadian\u2019s attacks before coming around her in the sprint to claim the rainbow jersey.<\/p>\n “For sure, I wanted to win in front of a home crowd,” Holmgren said in the press conference afterwards. “I’m disappointed to not win for Canada, but there were so many positives from today, so I can’t be too upset.”<\/p>\n \n (Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n Holmgren and Chlado\u0148ov\u00e1 both race on the WorldTour for Lidl-Trek<\/a> and Visma<\/a>-Leas a Bike, respectively, and know eachother well. As such, Holmgren knew the Slovakian has a kick and tried to avoid a sprint, but each time Chlado\u0148ov\u00e1 stayed with her.<\/p>\n \u201cI gave everything on that first climb on the last lap, and it wasn\u2019t enough to be solo. And then I tried again on the last climb, but once again, [Chlado\u0148ov\u00e1] was able to follow,” she said.<\/p>\n “In the end, it came down to a sprint, which isn\u2019t ideal for me, but I did everything I could on the day.”<\/p>\n Behind Homgren’s medal was a collective Canadian effort. Alex Volstad and Kiara Lylyk kept the team near the front and covered attacks, while Holmgren’s twin sister, Ava Holmgren<\/a>, raised the pace on a climb after Holmgren asked for a harder race. Sydney Swierenga also covered moves and provided support.<\/p>\n “I think [the medal] was won by the whole team today, and I’m really proud of that.,” Holmgren acknowledged.<\/p>\n “I’m just really grateful to have raced in Canada and to see everybody out supporting us,” she said. “So I think it was a positive day altogether.”<\/p>\n Explore More<\/p>\n![\"Viktoria](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/PK7y5HT5GMXbSheB2Z5sQK.jpg\")
\n<\/p>\n