Who will lead Australia in the elite men's road race at the World Championships in Imola, Italy, on Sunday?

Cycling Australia posed this question this week to retired classics specialist Matthew Hayman. He will lead the national team as sporting director for the first time on Sunday in the absence of head coach Brad Magee.

"Brad didn't travel. This year is a little strange for all of us. The World Championships were announced quite late, so they needed an alternate, and I got the request midway through the tour.

Heyman said that depending on how the 258.2-km race with a 5,000-meter climb unfolds, Matthews and Porte could be in the final. The peloton will complete nine laps of the 28.8-km circuit, which includes two climbs on Mazzolano and Cima Gallisterena.

"Except for the last circuit, the roads are quite narrow all the way around," Hayman said.

"There's a main uphill, but otherwise it's winding and twisty. I think the course is interesting and falls somewhere between a good classicist and a climber, just because of the cumulative distance of the climbs. I think we've got both of those covered."

Matthews won the Bretagne Classique d'Ouest-France, his first race back after the World Tour resumed in August, and is preparing for the Giro d'Italia, which starts next weekend. Porte, meanwhile, is coming off a career-best third place at the Tour de France.

"Michael has a world championship pedigree. 'He's had second, third, and fourth places and is a very good one-day rider. He has the talent and the days to climb. It will be tough with a lot of climbing, but in a World Championship circuit race like this, there is often too much climbing and the race can stall for a while. [As far as I know, Ritchie, the second Australian to stand on the podium in Paris, is in the best shape of his life after a great Tour de France.

"He seems very eager to be part of this Australian team and give his best on Sunday.

Australia made two late changes, announcing on Tuesday that Lucas Hamilton and Jack Haig had withdrawn and would be replaced by Chris Hamilton and Nicholas Schultz. Cycling Australia did not give a reason for the player changes in a statement.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the national team had to be resourceful at the world championships. The title was moved from Switzerland to Italy and was confirmed for the first time on September 2 during a modified and condensed season after a nearly five-month break in competition due to the global coronavirus crisis.

With the exception of Luke Durbridge, who arrived in Imola last weekend in preparation for Friday's elite men's individual time trial, the road teams arrived on Thursday.

The team scouted two laps of the course in windy conditions on Friday so that Heyman could develop a race strategy.

"We started to work on race strategy, but we still need to talk to the racers. They just saw the course today and I need to make sure my expectations match their abilities. We have two top guys and we need to get them as close to the finish as possible. And how we do that will be the details. Hayman said the camaraderie is good ahead of this championship, which is sandwiched between the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia."

"He mentioned that this year is a little different and a little special.

"I think it makes or breaks the national team. It's always special to wear the national team jersey, but we have to be able to give opportunities for our teammates who are usually on different trade teams."

"Richie just had a baby and the others are leaving for the Giro in a few days. We've been very careful not to put too much pressure on them, so we've had a little less time to build camaraderie. But you can only prove yourself, and I was always really looking forward to the World Championships," Hayman said. Maybe it was just the end of the season, but it was a great opportunity to catch up." [Spending so many years in Europe makes you more aware of being an Australian. You always hear good things at the World Championships."

Australian riders in the World Championships elite men's road race: Simon Clark (EF Pro Cycling), Luke Durbridge (Mitchelton Scott), Chris Hamilton (Sunweb), Jai Hindley (Sunweb), Damian Howson ( Mitchelton Scott), Michael Matthews (Sunweb), Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo), Nick Schultz (Mitchelton Scott)