European Road Cycling Championships 2026 in Slovenia: Home game for Pogacar?

The European Road Race and Individual Time Trial Championships will be held in Slovenia next year. This was announced by the European Cycling Union (UEC) on the short message service X during the current European Championships in France. The women's and men's competitions for the U19 and U23 age groups as well as the elite class with the professionals will take place between 3 and 7 October 2026. The venue will be the Slovenian capital Ljubljana. Under the title "A new chapter lies ahead", the UEC also announced that the competitions will begin with the road races - in contrast to the usual world championships - and that the time trial competitions will conclude the championships. A home race could be particularly attractive for the best Slovenian professional cyclists, led by four-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar and Vuelta and Giro winner Primoz Roglic. Tadej Pogacar is one of the favourites in the road race at the current European Championships in the French department of Ardèche. His partner Urska Zigart is also one of the internationally renowned professionals. The Slovenians' enthusiasm for cycling is great. A consequence of the recent successes of compatriots Primoz Roglic and Tadej Pogacar.

The European Championships have only been open to elite-class professional athletes since 2016. Since then, the continental title fights have become much more prestigious, as the names of the title winners show - from top star Peter Sagan at the premiere to top sprinters Alexander Kristoff, Elia Viviani, Fabio Jakobsen and most recently Tim Merlier. Mathieu van der Poel and Remco Evenepoel have also been among the medallists in the past. Anna van der Breggen, Marianne Vos, Annemiek van Vleuten and most recently Lorena Wiebes (all Netherlands) have won the women's title twice. However, the fact that the World Championships take place in Montreal, Canada, a week earlier could prove to be a problem next year. A start at both events would mean a long journey and a lot of time difference at short notice. It is not yet known what the tracks in Ljubljana will look like.

The provisional schedule at a glance in Ljubljana (Slovenia)

Saturday, 3 October 2026: Junior and women's elite road race
Sunday, 4 October 2026: Junior and elite men's road race
Monday, 5 October 2026: Road race U23 men/women
Tuesday, 6 October 2026: Team time trial elite / juniors
Wednesday, 7 October 2027: Individual time trial (all age groups)