Woods, Kirchmann and Poidevin lead elite road teams
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Michael Woods on the Vuelta a Espana podium after winning stage 17(Image credit: Getty Images)
Rob Britton (Rally Cycling) was awarded the red jersey as most aggressive rider on stage 3 of the 2018 Tour of Utah(Image credit: Chris Graythen / Getty Images)
Canadian champion Antoine Duchesne (Groupama-FDJ)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images Sport)
Owain Doull (Team Sky), Hugo Houle (Team Astana), Nigel Ellsay (Rally Cycling), Adam Roberge (Canada) and Charles-Etienne Chretien (Canada) were the breakaway of the day at Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Leah Kirchmann (Sunweb)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Sara Poidevin of Canada and Rally Cycling hangs on to the back of the lead group to go over the QOM during stage 2 of the Amgen Tour of California Women's Race (Image credit: Jonathan Device/Getty Images)
Karol-Ann Canuel (Boels Dolmans) on the attack(Image credit: Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
Alison Jackson (TIBCO) and Sara Bergen (Rally)(Image credit: Rob Jones)
Katherine Maine (Rally Cycling)(Image credit: Rob Jones)
Canuel and Kirchmann will also represent Canada in the individual time trial on September 23, while Britton and Houle will do the same in the men's time trial later that day.
"At the road Worlds, a lot of attention shifts to our elite categories," said Team Canada manager Kevin Field in a press release. "We enter both the men's and women's races with strong wildcard chances. Sara Poidevin has demonstrated she's got the potential to be one of the best climbers in the world of women's cycling. She'll come in underrated, and I like that.
"Leah Kirchmann and Karol-Ann Canuel have consistently demonstrated top performances in the Women's WorldTour, and Alison Jackson has had a breakthrough season. I'm really excited to see what our women can do. We have a strong, motivated and committed team that will once again be led by sports director Zach Bell.
"On the men's side, Mike Woods has proven the ability to be among the best in tough one-day races like Liège-Bastogne-Liège and on climbing stages at both the Giro and Vuelta," said Field. "Mike will get strong support from his teammates; everyone is pretty excited about our chances and committed to riding as a galvanised team."
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There's no place on the squad for current time trial national champion Svein Tuft (Mitchelton-Scott). The 41-year-old is set to retire at the end of this season, but is the last elite-level medallist for Canada, men or women, in the road race or individual time trial, having won silver in the time trial at the 2008 Worlds in Varese, Italy, behind Germany's Bert Grabsch.
Kirchmann, however, was part of last year's victorious Sunweb team time trial squad in Norway, although she was representing her sponsor rather than Canada.
In the women's individual time trial, you have to look right back to Anne Samplonius and Clara Hughes, who both took silver medals for Canada in the first two years that an individual time trial world championship was held, in 1994 and 1995, respectively.
In the road race, Alison Sydor took bronze for Canada in 1991 in Stuttgart, Germany, while you have to go all the way back to 1984 for the last men's road race medal, when Steve Bauer took bronze in Barcelona, Spain, in the year that Belgium's Claude Criquielion became world champion.
Team Canada for the 2018 UCI Road World Championships:
Elite men's road race Rob Britton Antoine Duchesne Hugo Houle Mike Woods
Elite men's time trial Rob Britton Hugo Houle
Elite women's road race Sara Bergen Karol-Ann Canuel Alison Jackson Leah Kirchmann Katherine Maine Sara Poidevin
Elite women's time trial Karol-Ann Canuel Leah Kirchmann
Under-23 men's road race Charles-Etienne Chretien Adam Roberge Ed Walsh Nickolas Zukowsky
Under-23 men's time trial Adam Roberge Nickolas Zukowsky
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