The Belgian national flag went up as Remco Evenepoel of Belgium won day one of the 2025 UCI Road World Championship Time Trial which kicked off this afternoon in Kigali, Rwanda.
Evenepoel won the men’s Individual Time Trial making this win as his third consecutive victory in the event.
He finished the 40.6km course in 49 minutes and 46 seconds, well ahead of the competition. Jay Vine of Australia took the silver medal, and Evenepoel’s teammate Ilan van Wilder secured the bronze.
The global cycling championship is the first edition of the UCI’s flagship annual event, organised since 1921, to be held in Africa.
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) said it is pleased with the exceptional participation figures for the 2025 UCI Road World Championships taking place in Kigali, Rwanda, from 21 to 28 September.
UCI President David Lappartient said re-emphasised that this first edition of the UCI Road World Championships in Africa is historic, both in terms of its location and its scale.
“These figures show that our UCI Road World Championships are attracting growing global interest. The exceptional participation of African countries, made possible by the event being held on their continent, illustrates the appeal of road cycling beyond Europe, both for National Federations and African riders,” Lappartient said.
UCI Fact Check:
To date, 108 nations have registered riders, which is the second highest number in the history of the UCI Road World Championships.
Only the UCI World Championships for road cycling held as part of the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow and across Scotland (United Kingdom) had a higher number, with 110 nations, but that event combined a total of 13 separate UCI World Championships.
Participation in the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Kigali is all the more remarkable given that the event is taking place outside Europe, the continent where the participation levels are traditionally the highest.
The total number of participants (unique) has reached 769 riders, compared to 647 riders in Wollongong (Australia) in 2022, the last edition held outside Europe.
The 2025 edition also marks a turning point for Africa: 36 African countries are expected, compared to 15 at the 2024 UCI Road and Para-cycling Road World Championships in Zurich, Switzerland. With 33.64% of participants coming from Africa (compared to 32.71% from Europe, 17.76% from America, 14.02% from Asia, and 1.87% from Oceania), an exceptional participation from the continent is anticipated at the event.
The number of nations registered to participate in the 194th UCI Congress, which will be held on Thursday, 25 September, in Kigali, alongside the 2025 UCI Road World Championships, stands at 132. This would also be the second highest number after the UCI Congress held in Glasgow, Scotland (United Kingdom), in 2023.
