The women’s under-23 road race at the 2026 UCI Road World Championships brings some of the strongest young riders in the professional peloton onto the Mount Royal circuit in Montréal on Thursday 24 September.
This is only the second edition to be held as a standalone U23 race. Célia Gery won the first in Kigali last year, but the Frenchwoman has moved into the elite squad for Montréal, guaranteeing a new champion.
There is no shortage of candidates. Isabella Holmgren arrives on home roads after spending much of 2026 racing near the front of the Women’s WorldTour, while Nienke Vinke, Marion Bunel, Fleur Moors and Viktória Chladoňová all have results that fit the demands of this course. Australia arguably have the deepest team of all, including newly crowned U23 time-trial world champion Felicity Wilson-Haffenden.
The race covers 134km across ten laps of the 13.4km Montréal circuit. With almost 2,700 metres of climbing and repeated passages over Camillien-Houde and the Côte de la Polytechnique, it should gradually strip the field down rather than leave everything to one decisive climb.
What the Montréal course demands
Unlike the elite women, the U23 riders do not have the flatter opening section through Montérégie. They head straight into ten laps around Mount Royal, making this a much more concentrated test of repeated climbing.
Camillien-Houde provides the longest sustained opportunity to increase the pace, while Polytechnique contains the steeper gradients. The rising finish on Avenue du Parc means a rider who survives in a small group still needs something left for the final acceleration.
The full Montréal World Championships course guide looks more closely at the circuit being used throughout the week.
Isabella Holmgren has the strongest all-round case
Isabella Holmgren starts with perhaps the clearest combination of course suitability, WorldTour results and home advantage.
The Canadian finished seventh at the Giro d’Italia Women and eighth at the Tour de France Femmes this season, alongside sixth at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and ninth at La Flèche Wallonne. Those Ardennes results are particularly relevant for a World Championship built around repeated short climbs rather than one long mountain.
Holmgren was sixth in the U23 road race in Kigali last year and has continued to move forward since then. Canada also have useful depth through Ava Holmgren, Sidney Swierenga, Kiara Lylyk and Alexandra Volstad, meaning Isabella should not have to respond to everything herself.
Photo Credit: GettyNienke Vinke looks made for a hard race
Nienke Vinke has spent 2026 establishing herself as much more than a developing stage racer.
The Dutch rider finished 10th at La Flèche Wallonne, 14th at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and 11th overall at the Tour de France Femmes. She then took silver behind Wilson-Haffenden in Monday’s U23 time trial.
That combination makes Vinke particularly dangerous if the race becomes an attritional climbing contest. She does not need a sprint from a large group. The Netherlands will be better served making the final few laps increasingly difficult and reducing the number of faster finishers around her.
Viktória Chladoňová returns after 2025 silver
Viktória Chladoňová came within two seconds of becoming U23 world champion in Kigali, finishing behind Gery after being one of the strongest riders in the decisive phase.
Her build-up this year has been quieter, but fourth place in the U23 time trial on Monday provided a useful indication that her form is there. Montréal should also suit a rider accustomed to repeated accelerations through her road and cyclocross programmes.
Chladoňová does not have the team strength available to Canada, Australia or Belgium, but last year showed she does not need many opportunities to put herself into the medal fight.
Photo Credit: Toni BaixauliMarion Bunel gets her own chance for France
Marion Bunel played a major part in Gery’s victory last year, sacrificing her own opportunity after making the decisive front group.
There is no Gery alongside her in the U23 race this time, giving Bunel a much clearer leadership role. The Visma | Lease a Bike rider is one of the strongest pure climbers in the field and should become more dangerous if the repeated Mount Royal laps turn the race into survival by the final hour.
Her biggest question may be the finish. Bunel would probably prefer to remove riders such as Moors, Ferguson and Ostiz before Avenue du Parc rather than gamble on a reduced sprint.
Fleur Moors gives Belgium a strong one-day option
Fleur Moors has produced some of the best one-day results of any rider in this field during 2026.
Second behind Lorena Wiebes at In Flanders Fields, fifth at Brabantse Pijl and 12th at Amstel Gold Race showed how quickly she has adapted to elite Classics racing. Montréal is hillier than her ideal Flemish terrain, but the repeated short efforts and technical racing should still suit her.
Belgium also have enough support to give Moors some tactical freedom rather than forcing her to chase every dangerous move.
Photo Credit: GettyAustralia have numbers and several ways to win
Australia are difficult to reduce to one leader.
Felicity Wilson-Haffenden has already won a rainbow jersey this week after dominating the women’s U23 World Championships time trial, while Mackenzie Coupland finished fifth and is already the Australian elite road champion.
Talia Appleton brings stronger climbing credentials, while Emily Dixon, Sophia Sammons and Tully Schweitzer make this the deepest squad in the race. Australia may be at their most dangerous by refusing to commit to one rider too early and forcing other nations to cover repeated moves.
Cat Ferguson is the big unknown
On normal form, Cat Ferguson would sit very high among the contenders.
The British rider won Trofeo Llucmajor and Navarra Women’s Elite Classic earlier this season after already establishing herself as one of the quickest finishers who can survive selective racing.
The issue is preparation. Ferguson’s season was interrupted by ankle fractures suffered at the Giro d’Italia Women, leaving much less recent racing evidence than most of her rivals. If she has returned close to her spring level, however, Great Britain have a rider who will become increasingly difficult to beat if a reduced group reaches Avenue du Parc together.
Photo Credit: GettyPaula Ostiz and the other riders to watch
Paula Ostiz should not be overlooked in her first U23 season. The Spaniard won the junior road world title in Kigali last year and has already spent 2026 gaining WorldTour experience with Movistar. A hard one-day race with repeated short climbs fits her better than a straightforward mountain contest.
Megan Arens gives the Netherlands another option alongside Vinke, while Julia Kopecký can take advantage of having greater freedom than she normally receives in trade-team racing. Ava Holmgren is also considerably more than support for her sister and finished sixth in Monday’s U23 time trial.
There is enough depth for the race to become difficult to control long before the final lap. The strongest nations have several cards, while riders such as Chladoňová have every incentive to attack before those numbers can be used against them.
Women’s U23 World Championships road race 2026 prediction
1. Isabella Holmgren
2. Nienke Vinke
3. Viktória Chladoňová
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Photo Credit: Getty
Holmgren has the broadest evidence across the exact type of racing Montréal should produce. Her climbing is proven over much longer races, she has already finished inside the top 10 at both Flèche Wallonne and Liège this season, and Canada have enough riders around her to avoid leaving their leader isolated too early.
Vinke becomes increasingly dangerous the harder the race gets, while Chladoňová’s 2025 silver and strong time trial this week make her difficult to leave out of the medal picture. Australia and Belgium may have the numbers to disrupt that order, however, particularly if the attacks begin several laps from the finish.
