Calendar has finally been published

<span class=”bold”>DH</span>

<i>9-11 June</i> – Lenzerheide, Switzerland
<i>15-18 June</i> – Leogang, Austria
<i>30 June-2 July</i> – Val di Sole, Italy
<i>August</i> – World Champs, Fort William, Scotland
<i>23-27 August</i> – Vallnord, Andorra
<i>1-3 September</i> – TBC, France
<i>7-17 September</i> – TBC, France
<i>28 September-1 October</i> – Snowshoe USA
<i>6-8 October</i> – Mont-Sainte-Anne

<span class=”bold”>EWS</span>

<i>25-26 March</i> – Maydena, Tasmania
<i>1-2 April</i> – Derby, Tasmania
<i>3-4 June</i> – Finale Ligure, Italy
<i>15-18 June</i> – Leogang, Austria
<i>24-25 June</i> – Val di Fassa, Italy
<i>1-3 September</i> – TBC, France
<i>7-17 September</i> – TBC, France
<i>TBC</i> – Whistler, Canada

XC<span class=”bold”>/XCC</span>

<i>5-7 May</i> – Valkenburg, Netherlands
<i>12-14 May</i> – Nove Mesto, Czech Republic
<i>9-11 June</i> – Lenzerheide, Switzerland
<i>15-18 June</i> – Leogang, Austria
<i>30 June-2 July</i> – Val di Sole, Italy
<i>August</i> – World Champs, Glentress, Scotland
<i>23-27 August</i> – Vallnord, Andorra
<i>7-17 Septemebr</i> – TBC, France
<i>28 September-1 October</i> – Snowshoe USA
<i>6-8 October</i> – Mont-Sainte-Anne

World Champs stil at Fort William

That’s good. Let’s hope we can actually watch it.

6-8 October – Mont-Sainte-Anne

Yeah errrrrrm.

No information on pricing…

Press release:
https://www.uci.org/pressrelease/uci-and-warner-bros-discovery-unveil-2023-uci-mountain-bike-world-cup-and/64KRJ0mb45MsFe8nn3DDBj

I reckon it’s a ‘make do’ calendar until they put their own stamp on it in 2024. Surprised to see Albstadt left out, and as rumoured by Bart on RBTV a few races back, Valkenburg, Netherlands….where the CX Worlds in 2018 were held.
Some massive gaps in the season, which one hopes are rectified in later years, as there is nothing worse than ‘dead time’ for a sport. Though mid August sees the combined Super Worlds.

Mont Saint-Anne in early October is interesting……

No Tweed valley EWS then?

No Tweed valley EWS then?

I’m still betting they throw in something in August in the tweed valley. ESO has commandeered the campsite at the bottom for 2 full weeks, which seems a lot just for the XC & Marathon races.

as there is nothing worse than ‘dead time’ for a sport

The athletes would beg to differ, they need time to recover, or start a new training block.

Doesn’t it say World Cup Glentress?

“I’m still betting they throw in something in August in the tweed valley. ESO has commandeered the campsite at the bottom for 2 full weeks, which seems a lot just for the XC & Marathon races”

Enduro world champs perhaps?

The June start is quite frustrating. It’s gonna be a painful wait for those first races.

The next major thing is what teams will be able to afford to attend if the fees go up to €20k. And if those fees are the same for privateers.

Then whether it’ll be free to watch. But I’m suspecting that it won’t be.

The next major thing is what teams will be able to afford to attend if the fees go up to €20k. And if those fees are the same for privateers.

So discovery will charge teams loads, charge the event locations loads and charge customers too.

They’re not exactly selling it to me.

Surely when you start a series you try to make it as easy for everyone as possible. They seem to be going with the opposite.

Wrong time of year, higher costs, less riders, wtf.

MSA should be fun next year

Warner Bros. Discovery also owns Eurosports, GCN/GMBN and have had the broadcast rights for recent Olympic games. They are also going into a joint-venture with BT sport – so they certainly have lots of experience when it comes to sports broadcasting.

I am interested how they might monetise all this though. Would certainly tie nicely into their existing GCN+ sub.

Not sure I really want the world cup DH series dragging on to October, without any extra races to fill in the gaps.

And I believe the athletes dislike the big gaps between blocks of races, as it’s tricky to hold form or logistically awkward if they aren’t from Europe.

No Fort Bill??
Although that’s the World Champs venue next year.

It does seem to imply there might be decent coverage of the enduro races though doesn’t it?

So there is no World Cup at Fort William next year then just the world champs? Do I read that right….we go every year and even after we have our first little un in October still have accommodation booked to do FW when it’s on.

I’m seriously tempted to head to Maydena and maybe Derby as well. However, I’d be interested to know if viewing EWS is worthwhile and also if there’s much chance of riding before and after the races at these events?

It’s a 2.5 day drive plus an expensive overnight ferry to get to the venues. And accommodation is sparse especially at Maydena.

@reeksy. Our daughter competed at the Derby one. She says that there were loads of spectators on all of the stages. Not much chance of riding the course before the race but possible once it finished.
We have travelled to everyone she has done in Europe and have managed to ride in all of them on some amazing trails.
The atmosphere at the events is on another level.
We have been back to some of them to spend more time at a relaxed pace. Others are on our todo list

Thanks @Tracey that’s good info.
I’ve ridden at Maydena (and done a lot of bushwalking in the surrounds) but not Derby. Finger crossed my wife (who would much rather watch slopestyle) would enjoy the atmosphere. I think my boys would love it.

The next major thing is what teams will be able to afford to attend if the fees go up to €20k

I presume this is being charged by eso as the race organisers rather than the broadcast company

perhaps it’sa question for Chris Ball to answer

Slightly off topic, but am I the only one that’s really dissapointed with the direction the EWS has been going recently?

When it first started out, it was a breath of fresh air as it was independent of the UCI and meant they could be more flexible with new and original venues, rules etc. They also had brilliant footage and long highlight videos.

Then they got involved with the UCI and it seems more restrictions have been creeping in and the overall quality of the series has went massively downhill recently due to issues such as poor organisation. Even things such as the highlights are now only 10 mins long if you’re lucky.

I feel this move to a joint calendar is going to further restrict the EWS and it is going to be ruined by more bureaucracy similar to how the UCI have treated the downhill the past while.

I hope I’m proven wrong about this but I have a feeling I won’t.

Nahyeah… You’re probably right in your doomsday predictions.

I think the joint calendar is an interesting idea – I can see the thinking behind it, but I’m not sure if it will work. I think it’s going to be logistically hard work during the 2-3 weekends when all 3 disciplines race together.

I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for the time being, as it’s their first season, but hope we see better over the next few years.

It’s only a World Cup if people say it is.. this might be the best thing to happen to MTB if everyone boycotts it and just starts their own series and calls it the World Cup/Championships in Enduro and DH… UCI are just an organisation … no different to any other profit making organisation except they like wearing lycra. DH and Enduro should never have got into their sphere in the first place so this could be the lucky escape.

Someone like Red Bull could do their own “World Cup” and “World Champs” for Enduro and DH

XC is already lost as a real sport since it became an Olympic discipline so they can stick with their lycra wearing bretheren.

I love the xc and think it’s developed well over the years. The shorter, rougher tracks make great viewing.
Am watching the Snowshoe DH right now (belatedly). Their kit is pretty well lycra now too isn’t it 😆? Only their body armour differentiates them from looking like those roadies. Probably time to retire the sport eh?

I love the xc and think it’s developed well over the years. The shorter, rougher tracks make great viewing.

It depends what you mean by “developed well” and if you mean to compete in or watch on TV.
Sports stop being sports when they get “developed for wider appeal” and become cash cows.

It’s pretty easy to tell a non-sport because people who don’t and never have competed follow it.
When a “sport” is changed for “wider appeal” it is no longer a sport but a business.

Their kit is pretty well lycra now too isn’t it

Lycra is just a convenient differentiator .. shorthand for why should a failed road or track cyclist have anything at all to do with selecting the team for the DH World Champs or where MTB funding goes. FFS they can’t even be bothered to field a full quota some years for DH at the World Champs (not even bothering to select the reigning UK womens DH champion) so they can use the money for their lycra sports or more likely skim it off for themselves.

Probably time to retire the sport eh?

XC is no longer a sport any more than football is a sport.. like anything else in the Olympics it’s now a cash cow being changed to draw in more cash and a wider audience not make for better competition between the athletes and in the UK BC have their cancerous cash-cow teeth all the way into it.

DH is fast becoming a “not a sport” as well thanks to the spreading cancer of UCI (and in the UK BC calling the shots) and it will drag EWS with it.

Well I’ve enjoyed watching it over the last ten years and have raced it nationally too. My favourite course ever was the 2018 nats at Hadleigh which was the 2012 Olympic course.
I’m sure there’s a ton of stuff going on that I’m unaware of though.
DH I just watch and find pretty darn good viewing right now. That mens final at MsA was ace!

rollindoughnut

Well I’ve enjoyed watching it over the last ten years and have raced it nationally too. My favourite course ever was the 2018 nats at Hadleigh which was the 2012 Olympic course.
I’m sure there’s a ton of stuff going on that I’m unaware of though.

Well, lots on lots of levels… at Grass roots it’s harder to even compete without belonging to a club and many clubs have waiting lists… at “higher” levels its much the same but with sponsorship as you get higher.

BC are funded by/for Olympic Golds… that was the sole purpose they were set up and funded for.
As an organisation they have zero interest in anything else even now it’s been thrown over the fence at them so its a pyramid of just casting off the chaff of many who can’t make it for whatever reasons

My experience with the kid was the waiting lists are just BS… the waiting list said “don’t bother even putting your name on” but after he managed a couple of local races he was allowed to without being a member (and won by a whole lap) they organised I got told “oh we can make room for him don’t worry about the waiting list”. (It seems very much like getting into Eton – people were putting kids on waiting lists when they were born and then well exceptions)

Lets not forget the deep institutional sexism in BC either …

DH I just watch and find pretty darn good viewing right now. That mens final at MsA was ace!

I guess what I think about that is it’s like when the US wanted to change the rules of “soccer” for the adverts… it had sod all to do with anything but advertising revenues.

DH WC being made for the masses does a similar thing.. where you can have a camera (more open less woods) .. making features to hurt riders if they screw up that can be filmed.. less twisty and more high speed because it looks better (leading to more high speed crashes) etc.

This seems biased towards casual spectators/subscribers etc. because that’s what generates revenue. It’s perhaps good for the very top level riders in terms of funding/income but its bad for everyone else and privateers who can’t afford the top medical care.

That schedule is mad. 3 weeks in a row starting in June then potentially 6 weeks in a row starting mid August to early October. No training or recovery time between rounds, just relentless logistics. I can’t see that being particularly fun for those competing.

There’s absolutely no way that’s sustainable much less necessary, you could start in May and have a 2 or even the occasional 3 week gap between rounds.

So there is no World Cup at Fort William next year then just the world champs? Do I read that right

@ChrisYork yes, that’s correct and the same as what happened in 2007.

Talking of World Champs as it’s less than 2 weeks away – have we seen a squad list yet for this year?