XC MTB World Cup 2024

XCO & XCC calendar:

12th – 14th April, Mairipora, BRA

19th – 21st April, Araxa Minas Gerais, BRA

25th – 26th May, Nove Mesto Na Morave, CZE

14th – 16th June, Val Di Sole Trentino, ITA

21st – 23rd June, Crans-Montana Valais, FRA

28th June – 7th July, Haute-Savoie, FRA

27th – 29th September, Mt Van Hoevenberg Lake Placid, USA

4th – 6th October, Mont-Sainte-Anne, CAN

As ever, XC tends to get overlooked on MTB websites, but it’s worth having a thread. With 2024 being an Olympic year, that’s where most riders will be focusing their attention. Most of the top riders have stayed on the same team.

Quite a few riders are already preparing for the season; some in South Africa, and Trek are in Denia with the Lidl-Trek road camp. We’ve even seen some racing CX in the winter.

And unlike Enduro, or DHI, there don’t seem to be too many teams disappearing.

I do hope you didn’t type that out by hand!

Really looking forward to it, glad it starts earlier than the DH too.

I am almost convinced its a better spectator sport than DH too – some absolutely brilliant racing last year. For the European rounds at least, Friday tea time short track, live, is brilliant TV.

I am almost convinced its a better spectator sport than DH too – some absolutely brilliant racing last year. For the European rounds at least, Friday tea time short track, live, is brilliant TV.

I didn’t really get into the DH last year. I always seemed to turn in at the wrong time.

The XC on the other hand seemed to step up. It helps that we had a Brit with prospects in the men’s and that they often started at the back

The women’s was also interesting. I liked the Mona effect where she seemed to be able to come back up through the field later in the race

Is there a cheaper way of getting replays of full races than discovery plus? I was planning on stumping up for GCSEs plus this year instead as of just watching the u23 races which they put on YouTube, but £7 a month is too much to justify just for this!

Course preview of the XCO Mairipora…….

U23 XCC tonight, no live coverage. Elite XCC tomorrow, followed by the XCO on Sunday.

What’s the thinking in the change of schedule? Normally short track is Friday teatime, which gives a day to recover before the main race on Sunday.

If the short track is now on Saturday, will we see even more riders taking it easy in the race to save themselves for the main event if it is a course that doesn’t favour them?

Is it still only on eurosport and discovery+ now?

Watched lats year on gcn, but thats gone now.

The Elite XCC races will take place on Saturdays when there’s no DH racing; otherwise they’ll be on the Friday evening. The possible reasoning is that organisers want more people at the venue – Friday evenings aren’t always as busy as they’d like……so Saturday is a better fit for them.

Most CX racers will ride a race the day before a CX World Cup, and that is for an hour; so a 20 min XCC should be in the capacity for the top XCO racers.

decent start to the season, I’d say

(Caution, spoilers may follow; XCC is done)

Brilliant last lap in the mens race.

For anyone who is (or looks like they are) in Switzerland you can watch on the SRF channel website with native commentary.

Some good racing from the women but the mens race was mental. To race at that speed in that heat, humidity and dust was mental. Really close mens race from start to finish.

Looks like lots of Lance Armstrongs on xc bikes

Great racing, I raced this morning and it’s good to experience that and then a gazillion levels above in the afternoon.

Watched the women’s race just now – the camera work was shite, missed important bits, very poor coverage

I enjoyed the racing today, love some drone coverage.

The course looked loads of fun.

I’m a bit smitten with the Specialized’s frame and forks colour scheme 😍

Three  – or four? – Spec Epics in the top 10’s, I can’t help thinking that’s a marketeers dream this year, those will be flying off the shelves if they weren’t already.

Have to agree, I’m loving the retro look of the Specialized team.

I’d say 1st and 8th for a small brand like Ibis was good publicity. I thought the womens race was fab. Loved jenny slowing down on the pump track

The coverage needs work. I assume they didn’t have cameras on the whole course. But it looked harder to cover than some courses because of the vegetation. Also not happy that they had as staring at nothing while we waited for the adverts to end and that they labelled the race under 23 when it wasn’t. But still glad to have watched it

Pivot course walk, interesting course.

Good last couple of laps and a great battle between Haley Batten and Jenny Rissveds. Be Intresting to know exactly what happened to Loana LeComte.

That last lap from Haley Batten was stunning, hats off. Very good race to watch, been some great crowds at both races too. Men’s race on in a sec is going to be great!

I thought the men’s race was due to be shown on Eurosport after the women’s but they’re now showing snooker    ….

That caught me out last year with Eurosport though IIRC mine was darts thats why I ended up subscribing to Discovery+

Great last lap there in the men’s race.
Shame we missed loads with the terrible camera work at the end though!

Was bad camera work at the end I thought we were going to actually miss the finish.

Feels sorry for Victor Koretzky, even when he got the chain back on it was still making some strange crunching noises.

Holy moly, that was absolutely fabulous.

Ric said it on the comms – if you think you know what XC racing is based on years past then you need to watch this modern racing. Its like Moto GP mixed with supercross on xc bikes. Incredible.

Specialized will be having a deep dive into what when wrong on Koretzkys bike!

ETA poor Andreassen looked absolutely shell shocked in the interview! Not sure he was fully with it!

what a finish!

Just annoying got to wait till the end of May for the next round.

I’d love to watch the Mont Saint-Anne race. I used to ski there!

Very wet race for the European Championships.

Very wet race for the European Championships

Yeah, watching the women’s elite right now. It looks like Wales in November.

I might have to nip over to the Giro to warm up a bit after.

Looks horrendous. Only realised it was being shown, yesterday.

Don’t know whats worse the weather or the dire music.

Pauline Ferrand Prévot pulled out.

A week deserved win, not saying who in case someone’s watching on catch-up!

The weather just got worse and worse, those women are looking totally wrung out.

Over to the Giro now for that warm Italian sunshine!

Hope the weather picks up for the elite men’s race. Hard to see what is going on through the mist.

Just seen a yt video on the course, looked soggy beforehand. And when did xc courses become so technical?