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As it happened: Dutch star secures first road title in illustrious career at World Road Championships women’s road race 2026
Start times for Road World Championships elite men’s and women’s time trial
As it happened: Birthday joy for reigning champion in World Road Championships women’s elite individual time trial 2026
Mass crash shocks peloton during women’s road race at World Championships, with defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres and Paula Blasi among affected riders
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By
Kirsten Frattini
Published
Several riders receiving medical attention after major incident occured with 95km to go
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The elite women’s race was affected by a large crash that saw upwards of 15 riders go down with 95km to go at the 180.1km event held at the UCI Road World Championships on Saturday, including defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres (Canada) and Vuelta a España champion Paula Blasi (Spain), who was forced to abandon the race.
“When the race entered the circuit, it was crazy,” Blasi said. “People were taking too many risks. Now, there was downhill, and three girls crashed but were all behind, so it just went over. Typical scratches from the road, not too much pain.”
148 riders started the race tackling the hilly 180.1km route featuring the closing Mount Royal circuit and eight ascents of the Camillien-Houde climb (2.3km at 6.2%).
The incident happened once the peloton reached the second of eight laps, with the riders coming down 12km into the circuit along Rue Saint-Urbain before turning onto Ave des Pins in the first third of the peloton.
The crash also included Femke de Vries (Netherlands), Daniela Campos (Portugal), Julia Borgström (Sweden), Carina Schrempf (Austria),
Claudette Nyirarukundo (Rwanda), Flora Perkins (Great Britain), Kate Courtney and Grace Arlandson (USA), Marta Jaskulska (Poland), Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset (Norway), Adèle Normand (Canada), Lauretta Hanson (Australia), and Caroline Andersson (Sweden).
At the time of the crash, there was a breakaway of two riders that were part of an initial four-rider move in the peloton, including Natalie Quinn (Team USA) and Marte Berg Edseth (Norway), and they still had a three-minute gap.
The crash caused major splits in the peloton, with those involved in the incident scrambling to get back on their bikes and chasing to try and close the gaps, including Kim Le Court-Pienaar (Mauritius) and Sarah Gigante (Australia), while Vallieres was left chasing at more than seven minutes back by the time they were partway through the third lap with 80km to go.
With visible wounds to her leg and hand, Vallieres abandoned, but not before arriving back at the finish line and waving to the crowds, bloodied, but with a huge smile still on her face as her title defence came to an early end.
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Canada cycling’s chief of sport Sebastien Travers spoke at the finish, but had little information to provide in the way of Vallieres’ condition: “She’s being evaluated by our doctors, as well as the organisation’s doctors, and as soon as we know more, we will provide more information.
Travers hadn’t yet seen the incident or spoken to the rider, but also said, “I’m hopeful she can rebound fast, and as I said, this is certainly not the last World Championships.
More to follow…
Subscribe to Cyclingnews for comprehensive race coverage of both the UCI Road and Gravel World Championships, alongside the final monument of the season, Il Lombardia. Subscribers get unlimited access to exclusive analysis from our expert columnists, in-depth features and industry-leading tech insight. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! Join today.
Kirsten Frattini
Kirsten Frattini has been the Editor of Cyclingnews since December 2025, overseeing editorial operations and output across the brand and delivering quality, engaging content.
She manages global budgets, racing & events, production scheduling, and contributor commissions, collaborating across content sections and teams in the UK, Europe, North America, and Australia to ensure audience and subscription growth across the brand.
Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling’s biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.
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Mass crash shocks peloton during women’s road race at World Championships, with defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres and Paula Blasi among affected riders
News
By
Kirsten Frattini
Published
Several riders receiving medical attention after major incident occured with 95km to go
-
Facebook
-
X
-
Pinterest
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Email
Follow us
The elite women’s race was affected by a large crash that saw upwards of 15 riders go down with 95km to go at the 180.1km event held at the UCI Road World Championships on Saturday, including defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres (Canada) and Vuelta a España champion Paula Blasi (Spain), who was forced to abandon the race.
“When the race entered the circuit, it was crazy,” Blasi said. “People were taking too many risks. Now, there was downhill, and three girls crashed but were all behind, so it just went over. Typical scratches from the road, not too much pain.”
148 riders started the race tackling the hilly 180.1km route featuring the closing Mount Royal circuit and eight ascents of the Camillien-Houde climb (2.3km at 6.2%).
The incident happened once the peloton reached the second of eight laps, with the riders coming down 12km into the circuit along Rue Saint-Urbain before turning onto Ave des Pins in the first third of the peloton.
The crash also included Femke de Vries (Netherlands), Daniela Campos (Portugal), Julia Borgström (Sweden), Carina Schrempf (Austria),
Claudette Nyirarukundo (Rwanda), Flora Perkins (Great Britain), Kate Courtney and Grace Arlandson (USA), Marta Jaskulska (Poland), Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset (Norway), Adèle Normand (Canada), Lauretta Hanson (Australia), and Caroline Andersson (Sweden).
At the time of the crash, there was a breakaway of two riders that were part of an initial four-rider move in the peloton, including Natalie Quinn (Team USA) and Marte Berg Edseth (Norway), and they still had a three-minute gap.
The crash caused major splits in the peloton, with those involved in the incident scrambling to get back on their bikes and chasing to try and close the gaps, including Kim Le Court-Pienaar (Mauritius) and Sarah Gigante (Australia), while Vallieres was left chasing at more than seven minutes back by the time they were partway through the third lap with 80km to go.
With visible wounds to her leg and hand, Vallieres abandoned, but not before arriving back at the finish line and waving to the crowds, bloodied, but with a huge smile still on her face as her title defence came to an early end.
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Canada cycling’s chief of sport Sebastien Travers spoke at the finish, but had little information to provide in the way of Vallieres’ condition: “She’s being evaluated by our doctors, as well as the organisation’s doctors, and as soon as we know more, we will provide more information.
Travers hadn’t yet seen the incident or spoken to the rider, but also said, “I’m hopeful she can rebound fast, and as I said, this is certainly not the last World Championships.
More to follow…
Subscribe to Cyclingnews for comprehensive race coverage of both the UCI Road and Gravel World Championships, alongside the final monument of the season, Il Lombardia. Subscribers get unlimited access to exclusive analysis from our expert columnists, in-depth features and industry-leading tech insight. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! Join today.
Kirsten Frattini
Kirsten Frattini has been the Editor of Cyclingnews since December 2025, overseeing editorial operations and output across the brand and delivering quality, engaging content.
She manages global budgets, racing & events, production scheduling, and contributor commissions, collaborating across content sections and teams in the UK, Europe, North America, and Australia to ensure audience and subscription growth across the brand.
Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling’s biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.
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-
1
A Tour de Langkawi that has the potential to provide the first answers on Lennart Jasch’s development into a GC threat
-
2
‘Yes, put me in’ – Riley Sheehan gets his call to compete for USA at Road Worlds hours after finishing GP Montreal and flying to Paris
-
3
‘There is definitely a beauty of having a competitor that’s so strong’ – Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney second best in explosive battle against Dutch rival at Road World Championships
-
4
‘We will just lick our wounds and come back for more’ – Kate Courtney’s debut at Road World Championships ends early after crash on fastest part of course
-
5
‘It’s the biggest victory of my career’ – Demi Vollering’s team-based plan pays off with title in World Championship road race
Mass crash shocks peloton during women’s road race at World Championships, with defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres and Paula Blasi among affected riders
News
By
Kirsten Frattini
Published
Several riders receiving medical attention after major incident occured with 95km to go
-
Facebook
-
X
-
Pinterest
-
Email
Follow us
The elite women’s race was affected by a large crash that saw upwards of 15 riders go down with 95km to go at the 180.1km event held at the UCI Road World Championships on Saturday, including defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres (Canada) and Vuelta a España champion Paula Blasi (Spain), who was forced to abandon the race.
“When the race entered the circuit, it was crazy,” Blasi said. “People were taking too many risks. Now, there was downhill, and three girls crashed but were all behind, so it just went over. Typical scratches from the road, not too much pain.”
148 riders started the race tackling the hilly 180.1km route featuring the closing Mount Royal circuit and eight ascents of the Camillien-Houde climb (2.3km at 6.2%).
The incident happened once the peloton reached the second of eight laps, with the riders coming down 12km into the circuit along Rue Saint-Urbain before turning onto Ave des Pins in the first third of the peloton.
The crash also included Femke de Vries (Netherlands), Daniela Campos (Portugal), Julia Borgström (Sweden), Carina Schrempf (Austria),
Claudette Nyirarukundo (Rwanda), Flora Perkins (Great Britain), Kate Courtney and Grace Arlandson (USA), Marta Jaskulska (Poland), Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset (Norway), Adèle Normand (Canada), Lauretta Hanson (Australia), and Caroline Andersson (Sweden).
At the time of the crash, there was a breakaway of two riders that were part of an initial four-rider move in the peloton, including Natalie Quinn (Team USA) and Marte Berg Edseth (Norway), and they still had a three-minute gap.
The crash caused major splits in the peloton, with those involved in the incident scrambling to get back on their bikes and chasing to try and close the gaps, including Kim Le Court-Pienaar (Mauritius) and Sarah Gigante (Australia), while Vallieres was left chasing at more than seven minutes back by the time they were partway through the third lap with 80km to go.
With visible wounds to her leg and hand, Vallieres abandoned, but not before arriving back at the finish line and waving to the crowds, bloodied, but with a huge smile still on her face as her title defence came to an early end.
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Canada cycling’s chief of sport Sebastien Travers spoke at the finish, but had little information to provide in the way of Vallieres’ condition: “She’s being evaluated by our doctors, as well as the organisation’s doctors, and as soon as we know more, we will provide more information.
Travers hadn’t yet seen the incident or spoken to the rider, but also said, “I’m hopeful she can rebound fast, and as I said, this is certainly not the last World Championships.
More to follow…
Subscribe to Cyclingnews for comprehensive race coverage of both the UCI Road and Gravel World Championships, alongside the final monument of the season, Il Lombardia. Subscribers get unlimited access to exclusive analysis from our expert columnists, in-depth features and industry-leading tech insight. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! Join today.
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