Pidcock and Backstedt lead GB at Road Worlds
Pidcock and Backstedt lead GB at Road Worlds. Great Britain's best cycling talents including Tom Pidcock and Zoe Backstedt will lead the charge at the Road World Championships – live on the BBC.
What happened
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Pidcock has won several of cycling's biggest races while Backstedt won last year's Under-23 world time trial titleByMatt WarwickBBC Sport senior journalistPublished6 hours agoTom Pidcock and Zoe Backstedt will lead Great Britain's challenge at the 2026 Road World Championships. 2km long and has a steep 45 metre rise at the finishImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Backstedt is in her element on a sophisticated TT bikeImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Hayter came agonisingly close to being one of the few people to beat Tadej Pogacar this yearImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Pidcock won the Mountain Bike Worlds last month and has won Olympic gold in that discipline, but the Worlds Road race, which is not until the end of the event, still eludes him1 of 4Previous imageNext imageSlide 1 of 4, Men's and women's time trial course profile for the Road World Championship 2026, Both the men's and women's time trial course is 39.
5's Pidcock leading the men's team in the road race, while Ethan Hayter races in the men's time trial. Lauren Dickson and Pfeiffer Georgi will likely lead the women's team in the road race and Zoe Backstedt will be expected to contend for the rainbow bands in the time trial. 2km long and has a steep 45 metre rise at the finishEnd of image galleryFull GB Road World Championship squadsElite Women: Zoe Backstedt, Lauren Dickson, Pfeiffer Georgi, Anna Henderson, Anna Morris, Flora Perkins, Alice TowersElite men: Mark Donovan, Ethan Hayter, Oscar Onley, Finlay Pickering, Tom Pidcock, James Shaw, Callum Thornley, Fred Wright, Adam YatesU23 Men: Jacob Bush, Mattie Dodd, Elliot Rowe, Will Smith, Ben WigginsU23 Women: Cat Ferguson, Abi Miller, Awen Roberts, Imogen Wolff, Morven Yeoman Junior Women: Aalia Clay, Peggy Knox, Gabriella McHugh, Zoe Roche, Melanie RoweJunior Men: Leon Atkins, Gus Dutton, Finlay Storrie, Dexter Townsend, Evander Wishart Elite coverage details on the BBCRoad World Championships streams on iPlayer and the BBC Sport website & appSunday 20 September:Women's Time Trial: 14:00-16:45 BST – iPlayer & BBC Sport website & app (14:45-16:45 BBC Two)Men's Time Trial: 17:30-21:00 BST – iPlayer & BBC Sport website & app (19:00-21:00 BBC Three)Saturday 26 September:Women's Road Race: 14:00-19:30 BST – iPlayer & BBC Sport website & app Sunday 27 September:Men's road race: 14:00-21:00 BST – iPlayer & BBC Sport website & app (19:00-21:00 BBC Three)Related topicsCycling
The championships include both the road race and time trial disciplines, with Pinarello Q36. Not for a long time have GB men a better chance to win in the road race, with double world champion and record-equalling five-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar forced to sit out the rest of the season after suffering multiple injuries in a crash at the Vuelta a Espana.
The wider picture
Slovenian Pogacar has dominated the world road race for the past two years, winning in 2024 and 2025 to add to his numerous other honours. Backstedt steps up to the elite category after winning last year's Under-23 race and is joined by Anna Morris, 31, who has won a number of domestic races in 2026. Performance director for British Cycling Stephen Park said: "The Road World Championships are always one of the standout events in the cycling calendar, and we are excited to return with a highly competitive squad.
"This squad showcases the very best of British road racing, at a time when more British riders are making their mark across Europe and on the wider international stage than ever before. The races for the coveted rainbow jerseys take place in Montreal, Canada, from 20-27 September, live across the BBC. The time trials come first in Montreal, with riders setting off at one-minute intervals, racing against the clock. In the men's time trial Hayter, who came second in the opening time trial of the recent Vuelta a Espana, losing out to Pogacar by just nine hundredths of a second, will be joined by Callum Thornley, while the favourite will be defending champion Remco Evenepoel of Belgium.
"We're proud of the balance in this squad, from established world-class performers to riders taking the next step in their development.
What has been reported
"Image gallerySkip image galleryImage source, Montreal 2026Image caption, Both the men's and women's time trial course is 39.