as world champion (1970), consisting of victory ribbon, cap, medal and rainbow jersey (collection
KOERS. Museum of Cycle Racing) The first world championships took place in 1921, though the only event that was contested was the
men's road race for amateurs. The first professional world championship took place in July 1927 at the
Nürburgring in
Germany where
Italian Alfredo Binda won the professional men's race and
Belgian Jean Aerts won the men's amateur race. The women's road race was introduced in 1958. A men's team time trial, contested by national teams, was introduced in 1962. Beginning in 1972, the team time trial was discontinued in
Olympic years only. Individual time trials in all categories were added in 1994, which was also the last year for the original incarnation of the men's team time trial. In 2012, the men's team time trial was reinstated, and a women's team time trial added to the program; both were contested by trade teams. In 2019, the team time trial events for men and women were replaced by a mixed relay team time trial. In 2020, no under-23 or junior races were contested at the Championships owing to the
COVID-19 pandemic; however, under-23 riders were eligible to compete in the elite races. Until 1995, there were separate races for male professional and amateur riders. In 1996, the amateur category was replaced with a category for men under-23 years old, with the professional category becoming an open (later elite) category. Since 1995 until 2022, the event has been held towards the end of the European season in late September, usually following the . Before that, the event had always been a summer race, held in late August or the first week of September (except for 1970, when it was a mid-season summer event). An exception to this was in
2023, when it was held in August as part of a combined multi-disciplinary
UCI Cycling World Championships, intended to be held every four years. The next edition of the UCI Cycling World Championships will be held in the
Haute-Savoie region of France in 2027. The world championships are located in a different city or region every year. The event can be held over a relatively flat course which, in the case of the road race, favors
cycling sprinters or a hilly course which favors a
climbing specialist or
all-rounder. In each case, the latter part of course is usually held on a circuit, of which the riders complete multiple laps. The
world championship road race and two of the three
Grand Tours (namely the and the ) form the
Triple Crown of Cycling. ==Editions==