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Follow us on GoogleThe men's World Time Trial Championship was won by Remco Evenepoel. The Belgian was in a class of his own on the fast course in Montreal and outclassed the competition. At the finish, he was a remarkable 57 seconds faster than Filippo Ganna, who took silver, while Paul Seixas impressively claimed bronze. Evenepoel is the first rider to become World Time Trial Champion four times in a row.
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Marlen Reusser got the ball rolling in the women’s race with an impressive victory in the time trial, but it also gave an indication of what kind of riders to expect. It was the fast riders who shone, so we can expect the same from the men. They’ll be tackling the exact same time trial.
Remco Evenepoel has been the best in the time trial for the past three years and has a chance in Canada to tie Tony Martin and Fabian Cancellara, who have both won the world championship four times. However, the Belgian could be the only one to do it four years in a row. Filippo Ganna appears to be his biggest challenger.
Among the first starters, however, those names were naturally not to be found. Gil Landim Gomes from Guinea-Bissau was the first starter, but the Chinese Chenglu Liu was the first to set a finishing time: he completed the 39.2-kilometer course in 52.25 minutes. But among the first men, most of the attention went to a South African.
Read more below the photo!
Fast South African, first real specialists get underway
Byron Munton was flying. He set the first benchmark time, finishing the cycling leg in 47.37 minutes. An average speed of 49.4 kilometres per hour was certainly not bad, but other riders were already proving faster as the race progressed. The Canadian Michael Leonard, riding on home soil, was also doing well. However, he was outdone by the strong-riding Kasper Asgreen.
Asgreen clocked a time of 46.41 at the finish, by far the fastest. Meanwhile, the favourites rolled off the starting platform: Paul Seixas, Alec Segaert, Brandon McNulty, Isaac Del Toro, Stefan Küng... Daan Hoole also set off from the starting platform, but by the first intermediate checkpoint it was already clear that he wouldn’t make the cut. He was already half a minute off the leading time there.
That time was held at that moment by Jakob Söderqvist. The Swede had got off to a very fast start, but Seixas and Del Toro were also well on their way. They fell short of the youngster, as did Stefan Küng, who conceded twelve seconds. Ganna was actually even slower. Was it a day full of surprises? Yes, but not for Evenepoel. He was in a class of his own: there was a nine-second gap between him and the second intermediate time.
Evenepoel flies, thrilling battle for the podium
In the women’s race, we’d learnt that with a good pacing strategy, you can still make up a lot of time on the final stretch, but would Evenepoel run out of steam? It didn’t look like it. Ganna did come close to the other top times, but Evenepoel was well over half a minute faster at the halfway point. Meanwhile, Seixas had set the new fastest time, giving herself a chance of a medal.
Hoole had paced his time trial perfectly and crossed the line in fifth place, which, in the end, was good for the ninth-fastest time. Söderqvist looked set for a podium place, but he crashed a few kilometres from the finish. As a result, he was 13 seconds off Seixas’s time and saw his medal hopes go up in smoke. Meanwhile, Evenepoel was steadily extending his lead.
At the third intermediate point, he already had a three-quarter-minute lead over Ganna, who had clocked the second-fastest time there. There was a brief moment of concern when the Belgian appeared to be pressing down on his front wheel in frustration. A puncture? Perhaps, but a bike change wasn’t necessary. He carried on and took the gold by a comfortable margin. Ganna conceded a whopping 57 seconds at the finish, but still took silver, ahead of Seixas.
Result, 2026 World Time Trial Championships - Elite Men
1. Remco Evenepoel
2. Filippo Ganna
3. Paul Seixas
4. Brandon McNulty
5. Jakob Söderqvist
6. Isaac Del Toro
7. Stefan Küng
8. Kasper Asgreen
9. Daan Hoole
10. Callum Thornley
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Tom van der Salm (27) comes from the charming town of Zeilberg (Deurne) in the Netherlands and has been working as editor-in-chief & journalist at IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, In de Leiderstrui, since 2019. He travels with the peloton from the Tour de France to the AlUla Tour and from the World Championships in Rwanda or Canada to the Zilvermeercross in Mol. In his spare time he enjoys playing football, mountain biking, running, walking with his Labrador/Stabyhoun, investing, holidays, (specialty) beers, reading, cooking and watching sports & documentaries!
Contact: [email protected]
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Latest Comments
- I’m still learning the calendar: is cyclocross mainly preparation for the spring classics, or does he race it as a separate goal as well? I’d love to see him back in the mud.jeremya04-11-2026
- The article makes it sound as if Roubaix is the only classic where he has a realistic shot. He’s been close in Flanders too, and one good tactical day can change everything.jennifer1904-11-2026
- Milan-Sanremo and Roubaix is a pretty special pair of Monuments. Any clues yet on which cyclocross races he’ll target?andrewf04-11-2026
- He’s right to be realistic about Flanders with Pogačar and Evenepoel around, but you can’t count Van Aert out on those roads. If he gets the right opportunity, he has the engine and experience to take it.davidm04-11-2026
- That Roubaix win felt like such a release after all the near-misses. Brilliant to hear that joy outweighed relief for Wout.patriciaw04-11-2026
- Why would a mountain time trial be different from a normal one? Is it just that the riders have to climb the whole course?samanthak03-11-2026
- I don’t quite buy the “fear of failure” argument. Riders can race the Giro and still have confidence in July; it comes down to recovery and planning, doesn’t it?patriciaw03-11-2026
- The Giro-Tour double is a massive ask, even for the very best. Pogačar made it look almost routine in 2024, but that’s hardly a sensible benchmark for everyone else!pedalpowe2903-11-2026
- Bakelants makes a fair point: if the 2027 Tour really suits Remco, he can’t afford to dilute the build-up. That 37km flat TT will be tempting, mind.julien03-11-2026
- Mont Blanc sounds like a spectacular finish, though four climbs on the final day might be a bit much after eight hard stages. Hope the route details are clear soon.raceready703-11-2026
