Enzo Hincapie bounces back after tough junior TT debut, targets road race on Mont Royal circuit

# Quick summary

# What happened in the time trial

Hincapie assessed his ride as a learning experience. He felt he may have expended too much early energy in the flatter, more technical sections before the climb and that the legs "weren't there at all today." He intends to recalibrate mentally and physically ahead of the road race.

# The road race target The junior road race is 134km with 2,690 metres of elevation gain and uses the Mont Royal circuit. Riders will climb Avenue du Parc—a steady 4% gradient—ten times. Hincapie said the race will be about staying in the right position and "hitting the climbs in a good spot," adding that there should be no moments of relaxation during the event.

Hincapie has raced at the 2025 junior Worlds road race in Kigali, where he finished outside the top 50, but he enters this Montreal race with higher expectations. The terrain resembles the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, where he trains, and his recent results in long junior one-day races suggest stronger form.

# Form and race experience this season Riding for Grenke-Auto Eder, a German-based development team linked to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, Hincapie has shown consistency in long, hilly junior races this season. Notable results include second at the Gran Premi Les Franqueses, a 138km hilly race similar to the Worlds course, and top-10 placings in junior editions of Paris–Roubaix and E3 Saxo.

# Team and context Hincapie's US junior teammate Kashus Adamski finished just one second behind him in the time trial, in 13th place. The junior time trial and the junior road race are scheduled with only two days between them, among the shortest turnarounds at these Worlds.

# Practical implications for the road race

• Team tactics should protect Hincapie through the flat sections and deliver him well-placed to start each ascent.
• Recovery and short-term recalibration after the time trial matter because of the two-day turnaround.

# Bottom line Hincapie treats the time trial as a learning ride and is focused on the junior road race as his main target for Worlds. His season results on similar terrain and local familiarity give him reason to be optimistic, but the Mont Royal circuit's repeated climbs will demand precise positioning and repeated high-effort finishes.