The men's road time trial event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 28 July 2021 around the Fuji Speedway in the Shizuoka Prefecture.

Roglič was around half a second behind the world champion, Filippo Ganna of Italy, at the first time check before eventually pulling ahead.

Dumoulin was third at the first time check, eventually engaging in a close battle for the silver medal, with less than five seconds separating the four riders behind Roglič.

The reigning Olympic champion is Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland, who retired from professional cycling in 2016 and therefore won't be able to defend its title.

An event preview from Olympics.com predicted difficulty for flat time trial specialists due to the hilly course and identified the following as favourites: Instead, look for someone like Roglič, Froome, or Rohan Dennis – two-time world champ in the time trial and an Olympic track silver medallist – to come to the fore.

Young hotshot Remco Evenepoel of Belgium and Rio silver medallist Tom Dumoulin of the Netherlands – if he decides to return from his indefinite break – could also feature in the conversation.

A National Olympic Committee (NOC) could enter up to 2 qualified cyclists in the men's road time trial.

Stefan de Bod (South Africa) threatened his time but he eventually fell short by less than a second.

In the second lap, Roglič gradually built his advantage as he maintained his pace while the other riders began to fade.

The battle for the silver and bronze medals also intensified as Dumoulin, Dennis, Küng, and Ganna were within five seconds of each other for most of the time.

Kasper Asgreen (Denmark) and van Aert also faded in the second lap, losing considerable time.