With the additional announcement of a Cross-Country Marathon, Enduro and E-Enduro make it three new events for mountain biking’s premier racing series.
Lovers of enduro races rejoice! Your favorite events just got a status upgrade.
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI, cycling’s international governing body) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) announced this week that the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup will include enduro and E-enduro in 2023.
This change means the Enduro World Series (EWS) will be elevated to UCI World Cup status. It joins cross-country Olympic (XCO), cross-country short track (XCC) downhill (DHI), and cross-country marathon (XCM). The UCI said in a news release that all enduro events on the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup would be one-day events.
In an Instagram post, the Enduro World Series (EWS) sounded more than a little pumped.
“We could not be more excited to tell you about the next chapter in our story — the EWS is becoming a UCI Mountain Bike World Cup!” the group said. “From 2023 onwards, EWS & EWS-E will join the World Cup family and be known as the UCI Mountain Bike Enduro World Cup.”
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UCI Enduro and E-Enduro: Details
Enduro racing comprises several timed Special Stages, mostly downhill, and Liaison Stages to reach the start of each Special Stage.
On each Special Stage, riders start individually at regular intervals, with all their recorded times added to decide the winner. To reach the start of each of the Special Stages, riders cover Liaison Stages either by bike or with mechanical assistance (chair lifts, trucks, etc.). Liaison Stages are not timed, but riders must reach the start of the following Special Stage within an allocated time.
Those are the basics, but the UCI version will add a wrinkle. Each round will include a points system for each timed Special Stage. An overall classification (according to points won) will decide the order of riders for the last Special Stage. The rider with the most accumulated points sets off last.
E-Enduro (E-EDR) follows mostly the same principles. However, the e-enduro events present slightly different courses, “including challenging technical climbs suited to the attributes of an enduro E-mountain bike,” UCI said in the release.
Other UCI News for 2023
In additional announcements for UCI’s Mountain Bike World Cup, the Elite downhill competition will receive increased screen time. That’s thanks to the introduction, at each downhill round, of a semi-final between the qualification and final. This will bring coverage and recognition of more riders (men and women) participating in the event.
In addition, thanks to the increased participation of Junior Women, UCI will introduce a qualifying run for this category, with the fastest 10 proceeding to the final. UCI will also broadcast the Men’s Junior and Women’s Junior competitions for the first time.
The amendments to the UCI Regulations for mountain bike racing will come into force on Jan. 1, 2023. Find them on the UCI website.
“I am thrilled that this international series will also include enduro, E-enduro and cross-country marathon from 2023,” UCI President David Lappartient said in the release. “These formats will add a new dimension to the reinvigorated series that is taking the mountain bike discipline to even greater heights.”
The full calendar of the 2023 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup will be published next week, the organization said.
