In recent months, bad news has dominated the Mountain Bike World Cup headlines. Teams have been disbanding one after another—Cannondale, BMC, Lapierre, Origine, you name it—leaving athletes facing an uncertain future. The overall situation hasn’t improved in the meantime, but at least the UCI has since announced that the Mountain Bike World Series will take place. It will make stops at ten locations: Nove Mesto (XC), Loudenville (DH), Leogang (XC, DH), La Tuile (XC, DH), Pal Arinsal (XC), Lenzerheide (XC, DH), Val di Sole (XC, DH), Soldier Hollow (XC), and Whistler (DH).

It’s striking that, following Australia in 2023, Brazil in 2024 and 2025, and South Korea in 2026, no venue outside the traditional MTB continents will host a World Cup this year. This may be a measure to curb costs and thus avoid forcing even more teams to pull out. 

Given the state of the World Cup circuit, one might detect a touch of cynicism in UCI President David Lappartient’s statement: “Mountain biking rewards riders who can adapt and overcome obstacles, and since every venue presents its own challenges, only those who repeatedly push themselves to their limits will compete for the overall titles.” Even some top riders face major obstacles long before they even attach their next race number to their handlebars.