Men's time trial at 2022 World Championships could be limited to 30km due to being the same distance as women's race

Unless special dispensation is granted to change the maximum distance of the women's individual time trial in a World Championships, both the male and female races at the 2022 edition will be limited to 30km.

Upon announcing the routes for the Wollongong-held Worlds next September, the UCI revealed that both the male and female time trials will be held over a similar distance as part of the governing body's drive towards gender parity. Both races will be held on the same day, too.

Current UCI regulations states that in a World Championships or at the Olympic Games, the maximum distance women can race in a time trial is between 20 and 30km. The men's distance is 40-50km. 

That means that given that both races will be ran at the same distance, under current rules both time trials will not be able to supersede 30km.

However, the laws are often slightly modified to take in extra kilometres, with five World Championships this century having male time trials over 50km, with 2013's edition being a whopping 57.9km.

Each of the last three women's time trials have also been ridden over 30km, but only just - the 2020 Worlds being 31.7km as Anna van der Breggen won for the first time.

That was the first year that both the men's and women's time trials have been the same distance, with Filippo Ganna taking his maiden rainbow bands in the time trial.

It was not the first time in recent years that the men have raced across a smaller mileage, though, with the 2017 course in Bergen being just 31km as Tom Dumoulin cruised to a comprehensive victory.

Both road races will take in two different circuits on a punchy course. The Championships will take place between Sunday, September 18 and Sunday, September 25.

The last time Australia hosted the Worlds was in 2010 when the city of Geelong welcomed the world's best riders.