The UCI Mountain Bike World Series Returns for the 2025 Season

The schedule for the UCI Mountain Bike World Series season was announced, and the contenders are ready to go, including USA's Kate Courtney, who is competing with her self-made team.

Jul 27, 2021; Tokyo, Japan; Kate Courtney (USA) during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Summer Games at Izu MTB Course. Mandatory Credit: Andrew P. Scott-USA TODAY Network / Andrew P. Scott-USA TODAY Network

With a change in the season comes a shift in focus for outdoor sports enthusiasts. The mountain biking season is ready to roll with spring well on its way. The UCI Mountain Bike World Season is returning for another year of nail-biting action, featuring the world’s best riders competing in four different formats on some of the most challenging terrain and courses in the world.

The Series will span 16 unique race weekends, starting in April and ending in October, highlighting the unique terrain of 10 different countries. The four formats are Cross-country Olympic, Cross-country Short Track, Downhill, and Enduro.

Cross-country Olympic (XCO): This event tests the riders’ climbing and descending skills during mass-start races that span multiple laps on technical courses — the event is the sole Olympic mountain biking format.

The UCI Mountain Bike World Season Ready to Roll

Cross-country Short Track (XCC): XCC events are held at the start of race weekends. They showcase a fast-paced race on a condensed track to determine the starting grid for the XCO races.

Downhill (DHI): Need for speed is the name of the game for this event, as riders race against the clock when descending steep and technical courses. The fastest time wins the trophy. This event channels pure adrenaline and presents a fan favorite.

Enduro (EDR): The endurance race of the day is comparable to a car rally. Riders are tasked with tackling multiple timed downhill stages throughout the day, pedaling to the starting point of each stage. The rider with the fastest cumulative time is named the winner.

Competition Schedule

Destination	Date	Event
Araxá, Brazil	April 3-6	Cross-country Olympic (XCO)
	April 10-12	Cross-country Olympic (XCO)
Pietra Ligure, Italy	May 9-11	UCI Enduro World Cup (EDR)
Bielsko-Biała, Poland	May 16-18	Downhill (DHI) and Enduro (EDR)
Nové Město na Moravě, Czechia	May 23-25	Cross-country Olympuc (XCO) and Cross-country Short Track (XCC)
Loudenvielle-Peyragudes, France	May 30-June 1	Downhill (DHI) and Enduro (EDR)
Saalfelden Leogang, Austria	June 5-8	Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC), and Downhill (DHI)
Val di Sole, Italy	June 20-22	Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC) and Downhill (DHI)
Val di Fassa, Italy	June 27-29	UCI Enduro World Cup (EDR)
La Thuile, Italy	July 3-6	UCI Enduro World Cup (EDR)
Pal Arinsal, Andorra	July 9-13	Cross-country Olympic (XCO) and Downhill (DHI)
Haute-Savoie, France	August 22-24	UCI Enduro World Cup (EDR) in Morillon
	August 28-31	Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC), and Downhill (DHI) in Les Gets
Lenzerheide, Switzerland	September 18-21	Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC) and Downhill (DHI)
Lake Placid, USA	October 3-5	Cross-country Olympic (XCO) and Downhill (DHI)
Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada	October 9-12	Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC) and Downhill (DHI)

Big Time Competitors

29-year-old Alessandra Keller (SUI) sits as reigning champion in the UCI cross-country and short track series and is ranked second in the world behind Candice Lill. Though it appears unwise to bet against Keller, there are some pretty talented contenders, including the 2024 cross-country champion and 2023 European champion, Puck Pieterse (NL), as well as the 2020 Tokyo Olympian and 2018 World Champion, Kate Courtney from the U.S.

American fans will watch intently to see how the season pans out for Courtney. Last year, she ended her partnership with Scott Factory Racing and moved on to her own team - She Sends Racing. The new team, meant to "inspire more women and girls to dream big," is sponsored by Allied Cycle Works BC40, which will also bring a U.S. brand to the competition. She Sends Racing represents a major milestone for the 30-year-old rider.

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On the men’s side of the competition,Tom Pidock (GBR) has a remarkable resume, having secured gold medals in the men’s cross-country mountain bike events at the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics. However, the 25-year-old mentioned his intention to focus on road racing, posing the question of how many events the Brit will attend this season.

"If my road programme fits so I can do the Worlds I'll try and race some World Cups to get some points. If not, maybe I take a year out of mountain biking," he said at Rouleur Live.

Pidock’s expected absence from some of the rounds of competition this season could potentially pave the way to victory for France’s Victor Koretzky, who came in second in both the Olympics and world championships in 2024. The UCI Mountain Bike World Series will be broadcast live on YouTube, the UCI Mountain Bike World Series website, and the GCN+, Eurosport, and Discovery+.

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