Not only that: with a few exceptions, they all look practically the same. Not all teams are lucky enough to have a national or world champion in their ranks - they at least add some color with their champion jerseys. Of course, the UCI doesn't give the teams much leeway when it comes to jerseys. Even during my time as a cross-country pro, it was normal (and I was proud of it) to belong to a team in which all members looked like cloned sheep (remember Dolly). Today I see it differently: there are too many Dollys.

If there's not much you can do about jerseys in racing, how about at least a different helmet design? Downhillers and enduro riders are leading the way. Anyone who is anyone in the sport has their helmet embellished by an airbrush artist. Even the helmets of the Red Bull athletes are not all the same - each one is a unique work of art that is nevertheless unmistakably reminiscent of Red Bull. Why don't cross-country riders also stand out from their teammates? They should at least make use of the leeway that the UCI allows - for helmet designs, socks, goggles, gloves or shoes. Florian Vogel from the Focus team sets an example, he wears different socks than his teammates. Teams that are not registered with the UCI should even give each rider a different jersey color. Ok, that might go beyond the financial framework, but it's worth a thought. After all, some enduro teams also race with different jersey designs.

Let's look at it from a marketing perspective: company bosses like it when all riders look the same. But let's take a team with four top-class riders and equip them with different shoe brands. The fictitious bike sponsor of the "Superride" team wants to see its bikes in as many places as possible. Because all the riders have their own shoe sponsor and each shoe sponsor wants their rider featured in their catalog, the "Superride" brand bikes are already featured in four other catalogs. Not bad, right? If the four riders also have different helmets, the range for "Superride" is already doubled.

Of course, it's all gray theory. But one thing is certain: the appearance of cross-country riders needs to be cooler than before. Cross-country country needs individualists!