World number one Tadej Pogačar produced a stunning solo ride to win his second world road race title and cap off a "perfect season" in Kigali on Sunday, September 28.
The Slovenian super star clocked six hours, 21 minutes and 20 seconds to successfully get over the grueling 267.5-kilometer course before crossing the finish line towards his team in celebration before cheerful thousands of cycling fans at Kigali Convention Centre including President Paul Kagame, UCI President David Lappartient and Prince Albert II of Monaco among other high profile guests.
Pogačar attacked on Mont Kigali with more than 100km to go and he dropped Mexico and UAE Team Emirates teammate Isaac Del Toro at Mur de Kigali after launching a stunning breakaway from the peloton, riding the final 66km alone to claim victory.
Pogačar, who also won gold medal in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2024, becomes the first man to win both the Tour de France and world road race titles in two successive years, cementing his position as one of the best cyclists to ever race.
His Belgian rival Remco Evenepoel, who had embarrassed him in the "Time Trial” race held on the first day on Sunday, September 21, finished second with one minute and 26 seconds behind the world champion. Having twice experienced mechanical challenges mid-race, allowing Pogacar to extend his gap to close to three minutes, Evenepoel could not settle for anything better than silver.
On the final lap, Irish star Ben Healey attacked his fellow escapee, Mattias Skjelmose Denmark, and eventually won the third place.
Out of the 165 riders who started, only 31 finished and no Rwandan finished this race out of the six that participated.
"I am really happy that i made it. It was an amazing experience here, and to put on the jersey again after one year is incredible,” Pogačar told the press after his victory in Kigali.
Pogačar also lauded Rwandan crowd, adding that the atmosphere across the city pushed him through the tough climbs of Mur de Kigali and Cote de Kimihurura (Kwa Mignonne) all the way to the finish line at KCC.
There was a lot of pressure!
Pogačar, who turned 27 on September 21, admitted that he and his teammates were feeling a lot of pressure before his road race world title defense in Kigali.
« I am so happy that we could pull it off as a team because we had a lot of pressure and come here as favourites...we pulled it off and i am proud and happy, » said Pogačar after the victory.
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Speaking about his experience in Rwanda, and his first time racing in Africa, the four-time Tour de France champion hailed the country’s landscape which helped him prepare well for Sunday’s victory.
"I really feel it; it’s the nation of a thousand hills. From the moment I arrived here until today, when I’m leaving, I will remember Rwanda in a really positive way. I had one of the best training experiences here with my girlfriend (Urška Žigart) and my team. This made the race even more special,” he said.
The 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Kigali marked the first time the event was held on African soil, and Pogačar’s triumph will forever be linked with this historic milestone.
Top Five Classification results
- Tadej Pogačar (Slovenia) — 6:21:20
- Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) — +1:28
- Ben Healy (Ireland) — +2:16
- Mattias Skjelmose (Denmark) — +2:35
- Toms Skujiņš (Latvia) — +6:41