Stunned McNulty wins 'miracle' road race world title

Montreal, September 28 - Brandon McNulty made history as the first American in 33 years to secure the men’s cycling road race world title in Montreal. The 28-year-old American cyclist broke away with 32 kilometers remaining on the Canadian street course and held off a disorganized chase to claim victory by a margin of 13 seconds.

Australian Michael Matthews took second place, while former champion Mathieu van der Poel finished in third. McNulty expressed his shock, stating, "Honestly I don’t know. Really this is, I don’t know. Until the last 100 metres I really didn’t even believe it. I was so tired."

The last American to wear the coveted rainbow jersey was Lance Armstrong in 1993. McNulty admitted to his surprise at the possibility of winning, saying, "I made some jokes to my wife... I knew something could happen, but it would take a miracle, and I guess miracles happened." McNulty’s success came after launching an opportunistic move following a four-man breakaway, which included van der Poel, during the race.

This win will see McNulty ride for his Slovenian team leader Tadej Pogacar next year while wearing the world champion’s jersey. Pogacar expressed enthusiasm about riding with the rainbow jersey for his teammate. Despite aggressive efforts by chase groups, including Briton Tom Pidcock and Irishman Ben Healy, McNulty maintained his lead, ultimately winning after a grueling 273.4 kilometers over six hours and 17 minutes.