About a month ago in African territory, we witnessed one of the biggest surprises in women's cycling in recent years. Canadian Magdeleine Vallieres won the world road title as a complete outsider, beating not only the favorite athletes, but also those in the second and third tiers. Everyone was incredulous, including herself, who, crossing the finish line with raised arms, began to wonder if it was a joke or if she was actually living an enormous dream.

It must be said that for most spectators, she is an unknown name, while those who know a bit about women's cycling are well aware that Magdeleine is a promising young athlete, with a victory in the Trofeo Palma Femenina, but in most races she has worked as a domestique to gain experience. Yet on September 27th, the career, indeed the entire life of the Canadian athlete was completely turned upside down by a world champion jersey. "If I think about the victory in Kigali, even though some time has passed, it still seems unreal to me. I didn't sleep that night, I kept thinking about what had happened, reliving the final kilometers convinced that at any moment someone would tell me it was all a product of my imagination. Even in the following days, I struggled to fall asleep. The emotions were gigantic, but I must move forward," Magdeleine told us during one of the last races of the season, her voice still filled with the vivid emotion of that world title and the desire to return to her normality by continuing to do her favorite thing: riding a bike.

It's strange how someone who until a few weeks earlier was just another rider in the peloton is now greeted with a round of applause. This happened at the Giro dell'Emilia and was repeated in Varese during the Tre Valli, two races she had already participated in during 2022, her first professional season. This year she decided to return because she has always liked racing in Italy. Now, however, "Mags" wears the world jersey, or rather, as she jokingly tells us, the team has made her the entire outfit, even gloves and helmet with rainbow stripes so she's sure to take the right one and not forget it. "When they handed me the jersey, it was a new emotion. It's strange to wear it, but also a great honor. I really like these rainbow stripes," she told us while fans elbowed each other for an autograph and photographers for a shot. Magdeleine smiles in the face of all this attention; she'll have to get used to it. The title is hers for a year, and she'll have to promptly respond to the call of the "world champion". But will everything in her life really change?

"It's all so strange. From one day to the next, people have started to recognize me, ask me questions, consider me an incredibly strong athlete capable of winning everything. In reality, I'm still the same person. Sure, I won the world championship, but I'm still me, Mags who loves riding a bike and having fun. What's happening is all new. People expect so much from me. Suddenly, I've become the favorite for all the races I've participated in, when in reality I wasn't at all. From the start, I've tried to experience everything very naturally. I've transformed the pressure into something positive, a push to improve myself as a person and as an athlete. I was never a leader; I've always worked hard for my teammates. I believe the only change in my career will be that perhaps I'll be given more opportunities, especially in races that suit me," the Canadian tells us from the heart. There are no roundabout words, no attempts to dodge our questions, just a desire to tell her story and feel like a cyclist like any other. She doesn't define herself as a champion, but hopes to become one. She's the first to realize the small earthquake she created with her victory and has learned to laugh about it. "In Africa, I wasn't the favorite and I won. I was the first not to expect it, so why would others? I can't deny that I dreamed of winning a world championship, but it's one of those things you imagine just to joke about, fully aware that realizing them is impossible."

And yet that impossible dream became reality, a masterful plot twist that put the Quebec girl at the center of the stage. Magdeleine has already understood the weight of her jersey, knows it will be a launching pad but also a trap. She wants to take the right time to grow and live her dream. She loves riding a bike, loves cycling in its purest form, and when she was 9 years old, she knew it would definitely be her path. "I always rode a bike for fun, then when I was 9, I took my first bikepacking trip with my father. It was a great challenge because we traveled over 1000 kilometers along the Atlantic coast, but on that occasion, I understood that cycling would forever be part of my life. I started my first races in high school, but in Quebec, there weren't many opportunities. Fortunately, I was included in the World Cycling Center program, I came to Europe, and since 2022 I've been racing for Ef. This entire journey was possible thanks to people who believed in me," explains Magdeleine, emphasizing that without the trust of many people who bet on her, she would have remained in Canada competing in regional races or even in front of the television.

After an ending like this, expectations for the twenty-four-year-old Ef Education Oatly rider rise for a 2026 in which she'll wear the world jersey in all the most important races in the world. There's not yet a defined calendar, but certainly there will be space for her in the team, and she'll have the opportunity to test herself and find her moment. At 24, Magdeleine has already achieved a career-defining goal, becoming the first Canadian to wear the world jersey. After hearing her story, one question comes to mind: "Now that you're world champion, having achieved everyone's dream, what do you dream of?" She looks at us with a smile and responds directly: "To become a complete athlete and prove that I deserved this jersey."