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WHAT MAKES A GREAT TEAM JERSEY?
Elias Wändel delivered a huge result for Sweden at the 2026 UCI Road World Championships, taking bronze in the Junior Men’s Road Race after a powerful finish in Montréal.
The Swedish junior produced a determined ride across the demanding 134 km Montréal circuit, eventually reaching the group fighting for the final podium position. When the race came down to the sprint for bronze, Wändel proved the strongest and secured third place in the world.
Wändel Fights His Way Into Medal Contention
The Junior Men’s Road Race featured 10 laps of a demanding Montréal circuit with repeated climbing around Mont-Royal and 2,690 metres of elevation gain.
Wändel worked his way into contention during the decisive part of the race, eventually joining the group chasing behind the two leaders.
With Spain’s Benjamín Noval clear at the front and France’s Simon Defrance racing toward silver, the battle behind became a fight for the final World Championship medal.
Wändel made one final attempt to create separation on the climb. When the move did not produce a large enough gap, the Swedish rider switched his focus to the finish.
Strongest in the Sprint for Bronze
Noval crossed the line alone to become Junior Men’s Road Race World Champion, with Defrance taking silver 42 seconds later.
Behind them, Wändel faced Owen Kings, Michael Hettegger and Gal Stare in the battle for bronze.
When the sprint opened, Wändel had the speed to finish it off.
He crossed the line 2:12 behind Noval, taking third place and the bronze medal for Sweden.
2026 Junior Men’s Road Race — Top 5
🥇 Benjamín Noval 🇪🇸 — 3:23:35
🥈 Simon Defrance 🇫🇷 — +0:42
🥉 Elias Wändel 🇸🇪 — +2:12
4️⃣ Owen Kings 🇩🇪 — +2:12
5️⃣ Michael Hettegger 🇦🇹 — +2:12
A Medal After a Race Against Time
The bronze carries additional significance after Wändel arrived in Montréal following a recent crash in Switzerland.
According to the Swedish Cycling account, Wändel raced with substantial bandaging around his knee and had skipped the World Championship time trial while working to recover sufficiently for the road race.
That made reaching the start line part of the challenge. Reaching the World Championship podium completed the comeback.
After the finish, Wändel said the race had been extremely hard from beginning to end, while adding that the medal felt deserved after the work he had put into his season.
Sweden on the World Championship Podium 🇸🇪
Wändel’s bronze gives Sweden a place on the Junior Men’s Road Race podium at the 2026 UCI Road World Championships in Montréal.
Swedish teammates Oscar Lorentsson and Patrik Zacharzewski also completed the race, finishing 45th and 48th respectively, according to Swedish Cycling’s race report.
From all of us at CCN Sport, congratulations to Elias Wändel, SWE Cycling, and the entire Swedish National Team on an incredible performance in Montréal. We’re proud to see Sweden on the World Championship podium and proud to support the team on the world stage.
📸 Photo: Sprintcycling Agency, UCI
Our National Champion Wesley Barrow received his new National Champion suit and jacket, thank you CCN Sport
PERFORMANCE IN EVERY LAYER.
The crash of Jakob Söderqvist that definitively decided the battle for the bronze medal.
Against the clock. For the rainbow.
Factor Racing continues its racing campaign in China at the Tour of Taihu Lake 2026, with Adam Bradáč already delivering two top-10 stage results for the young Continental squad.
Following the team's appearance at the Tour of Shanghai, Factor Racing returned to the Chinese peloton for the 2026 Tour of Taihu Lake, a five-stage UCI 2.1 road race running from September 12–16. The race covers roughly 590 kilometers, finishing with Stage 5 in Wuxi.
Factor Racing entered the race with a five-rider lineup featuring Adam Bradáč, Ting Wei Li, Maj Flajs, Nash Joshua Lim and Nejc Komac, directed by Aldo Ino Ilesic.
The team is competing in a deep international field that includes WorldTeam, ProTeam and Continental opposition, giving Factor's developing roster another opportunity to race at a high level in Asia.
Factor Racing quickly made its presence felt through Adam Bradáč. Bradáč opened the Tour with 15th place on Stage 1, staying with the leading group as Joshua Giddings took the opening victory.
The following day brought an even stronger result.
On the 153.2-kilometer Stage 2 around Changxing, the race ended in a bunch sprint won by Matteo Malucelli of XDS Astana Team. Bradáč crossed the line in 10th place, recording Factor Racing's first top-10 finish of the Tour.
Staying in the Mix
Stage 3 continued the run of consistent finishes, with Bradáč taking 16th place in Suzhou-Wujiang and finishing on the same time as stage winner Malucelli.
Factor then moved even closer to the front on Stage 4.
In another fast finish in Qidong, Bradáč crossed the line in 7th place, behind stage winner Malucelli, Joshua Giddings and several of the race's leading sprinters. It marked Bradáč's second top-10 result in three days.
The Tour of Taihu Lake gives Factor Racing another block of high-level racing in China shortly after the team's Tour of Shanghai campaign.
For a young Continental roster, racing against established international teams provides valuable opportunities to develop positioning, teamwork and experience in fast stage-race conditions.
With Bradáč already recording 10th on Stage 2 and 7th on Stage 4, Factor Racing has remained competitive as the race heads toward its conclusion in Wuxi.
