Lots of chatter in the peloton as they roll by fans on the side of the road.
First attack
Mischael Alhazmi from Saudi Arabia is the first attacker but is quickly back in the peloton.
The flag drops, and the race is on after a 4km neutral section. Peloton is spread across the road with the Dutch team massed at the front.
Starting on the South Shore in Brossard, the women head south on an approximately 43km loop through Carignan, Chambly, and Richelieu in the Montérégie region before returning to Brossard and heading to Montréal.
The peloton will then ride the Samuel-De Champlain Bridge towards the Mount Royal circuit which the women will tackle eight times, after having 73km in the legs already. The now-iconic circuit features several major challenges: the Voie Camillien-Houde, the Chemin de la Polytechnique, and the tough false flat rising along Avenue du Parc to the line.
(Image credit: UCI)
The 140 riders representing 57 nations, including new countries of Panama, the Philippines and Saudi Arabia are off.
They will face 2570 metres of elevation gain over the 180.4km course featuring the closing Mount Royal circuit.
(Image credit: UCI)
Three minutes until the start in Brossard – more on the route coming up.
It is sunny in Brossard, with cool temperatures around 12°C, but the day should warm up, as the forecast calls for a high of 23°C in Montréal.
Along with Vallieres, Belgian leader Lotte Kopecky is the only previous World Champion lining up at the start. She won twice before, in Glasgow in 2023 and Zurich in 2024.
Speaking on Friday, Kopecky acknowledged that Demi Vollering stands out as the favourite, but said plenty of other contenders are in the mix.
‘She might well be the woman to beat’ – Lotte Kopecky acknowledges Demi Vollering is top World Championships favourite but points to strong field of contenders
‘If that top day comes, then a lot is possible’ says two-time world champion of her own chances in Montreal
More on Vollering from Laurens ten Dam, the Dutch team coach:
“She is incredibly focused, that’s true. Two days after the Tour de France, I got the first message already from her, ‘OK, job’s not finished’. I was like, ‘OK, she’s on’,” Ten Dam told Cyclingnews on Thursday evening.
‘Job’s not finished’ – Demi Vollering keeping quiet on game plan as she leads Dutch squad at Road World Championships
Two-time Tour de France Femmes winner thrives on responsibility this year as lone team leader for first rainbow reward
Will Dutch racer Demi Vollering finally win a world title today? She lines up as the top favourite, having swept almost all before her this season.
Reigning champion Magdeleine Vallieres of Canada shared her thoughts on social media on the eve of the road race.
Hi. Bonjour. Welcome to our live report on Cyclingnews for the elite women’s road race on the final weekend of the 2026 UCI World Road Championships in Montréal, Canada.
