British junior time trial champion Aalia Clay clinches Worlds bronze by just 0.07 seconds

Aalia Clay at the 2026 UCI Road World Championships, competing as a junior — (Image credit: Getty Images)

Aalia Clay won bronze in the junior women’s time trial at the UCI Road World Championships in Montréal on Tuesday, adding an international podium to a breakthrough season.

"It means a lot," Clay said. "It was pretty unexpected to me, and it’s pretty exciting."

The British rider completed the 10.7km course in 15:42, 24 seconds down from Poland’s Maria Okrucińska's race-winning time. Belgium’s Yana Decruyenaere earned the silver medal, 12 seconds back. Clay beat Switzerland’s Anja Grossmann to secure the final podium place by just seven hundredths of a second.

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This result follows her victory at the British junior time trial championships in July as well as successes on the road.

In June, she became the first junior to win the women’s Ronde van Wymeswold overall, before adding top-10 finishes at the junior editions of Druivenkoers–Overijse and Grand Prix de Plouay.

At 17, this is Clay's first season as a junior. It was also her first World Championship appearance.

With those results and another season in the junior ranks ahead, Clay already has a target for her return to the World Championships.

"Hopefully to continue with this form next year and maybe world champion next year - that would be really cool," she told the media after the race.

She added that she's uncertain about her chance in "hilly France," but she hopes she'll be selected for them again. "And definitely aim for a jersey."

First, though, comes the junior women’s road race in Montréal. On Friday, Clay will line up alongside Scottish national road race champion Melanie Rowe, Zoe Roche, Peggy Knox, and Gabby McHugh, who is the only member of the British junior women’s squad to arrive with previous road world championship experience.

The race will take place at 2:15 PM local time / 7:15 PM BST.

Cycling Weekly's North American Editor, Anne-Marije Rook is old school. She holds a degree in journalism and started out as a newspaper reporter — in print! She can even be seen bringing a pen and notepad to the press conference.

Originally from the Netherlands, she grew up a bike commuter and didn't find bike racing until her early twenties when living in Seattle, Washington. Strengthened by the many miles spent darting around Seattle's hilly streets on a steel single speed, Rook's progression in the sport was a quick one. As she competed at the elite level, her journalism career followed, and soon, she became a full-time cycling journalist. She's now been a journalist for two decades, including 14 years in cycling.