Lauren Parker has continued her incredible form at the 2025 Para-cycling World Championships, with a commanding solo victory in the H3 road race to claim her second rainbow jersey this week.
Parker was unmatched throughout the 46.2-kilometre race, finishing in a time of 1 hour 34 minutes - 4 minutes and 34 seconds ahead of her nearest opponent - to win the gold medal, even surprising herself.
“It’s just amazing, I didn’t expect that race to turn out the way it did,” she said after the race.
“I’m just so relieved and so happy. My arms are absolutely dead, I had nothing left.”
Tackling three laps of a 15.4-kilometre course from Ronse, Belgium, Parker wasted no time asserting her dominance surging ahead on the first climb. She worked briefly with two H5 riders before dropping them on the decent, before going into time trial mode for the rest of the race.
After the first lap she held a gap of more than on minute, which she continued to extend with each lap.
“As soon as I got a gap on that first hill I thought I’m just going to go for it like I did in Paris and backed myself and that’s what I did,” Parker said.
“I felt strong out there and I just kept pushing. I worked with the two H5 girls at the start and then I got gap from them then I just went for it and didn’t look back.”
The win comes just days after she was crowned world champion the H3 individual time trial.
Parker now turns her focus to the mixed H team relay with Grant Allen and Alex Welsh, where she will attempt to achieve a rare feat— three world titles from a single para-cycling road world championship.
Welsh finished 14th in his H3 road race, while Allen placed 9th in the H4 category.
IMAGES: SWPix