Three-Day Event Brings World’s Best Mountain Bikers to Mt Van Hoevenberg and Whiteface

Event Expected to Generate More Than $10 Million in Regional Economic Impact While Crowning 2026 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Champions

Lake Placid to Stage Presentation of ‘The Summit’, the first UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Team Trophy

MEDIA CREDENTIAL REQUESTS | TICKETS ON SALE

The New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority (Olympic Authority) today announced that tickets are on sale for the Season Finale of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, taking place October 2-4.

Featuring Cross-country Short Track (XCC) and Cross-country Olympic (XCO) racing at Mt Van Hoevenberg and Downhill (DHI) competition at Whiteface Mountain, the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series returns to Lake Placid for a third consecutive year. As the final stop on the 14-stage global circuit, the three-day event will bring the world’s best elite, under 23 and junior riders to the Adirondacks to compete for UCI World Cup victories, overall series titles, and season-ending honors. In addition to crowning individual UCI World Cup champions, Lake Placid will host the presentation of The Summit, the first-ever UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Team Trophy, recognizing the top-performing cross-country and downhill teams across the season.

Rebecca Dayton, Vice President, Events & Sport Programs Management at the Olympic Authority, said: “The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series has brought tremendous energy, international visibility, and economic benefit to the Adirondack region while showcasing our venues and communities to a global audience. As we prepare to host the 2026 season finale, we are proud of what has been accomplished through our collaboration with Warner Bros. Discovery Sports, UCI, local partners, and the cycling community. We value these relationships and look forward to exploring future opportunities together that support the continued growth of cycling and outdoor recreation.”

ECONOMIC IMPACT

The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series continues to generate significant economic benefits for the Lake Placid region. According to an independent analysis by Tourism Economics, the 2025 event generated:

  • $6.7 million in direct visitor spending
  • $10.7 million in total economic impact
  • $1.4 million in state and local tax revenue
  • More than 11,000 unique attendees, with 98 percent visiting from outside the local economy

Visitor spending supported local hotels, restaurants, retailers, recreation providers, and transportation services throughout the region.

WHERE UCI WORLD CUP TITLES WILL BE DECIDED

The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series includes multiple disciplines contested throughout the season, including Cross-country Olympic (XCO), Cross-country Short Track (XCC), Downhill (DHI) and Enduro (EDR). Lake Placid will serve as the 2026 season-finale for XCC, XCC, and XCO, with overall UCI World Cup titles awarded at the conclusion of the races. Since making its debut in Lake Placid in 2024, the event has become a marquee stop on the international calendar, drawing athletes and spectators from around the world to the Olympic Region.

Chris Ball, Vice President of Cycling Events at WBD Sports, said: “As an iconic Olympic destination with a rich history of hosting major international sporting moments, Lake Placid offers a fitting setting for the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season finale. Its combination of world-class facilities, experienced delivery and strong connection to elite sport provides an ideal backdrop to celebrate the achievements of athletes and teams and across the series.”

SERIES CONTINUES TO EVOLVE

The 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series continues to build on recent innovations introduced by Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports and the sport’s governing body, the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale), including the launch of the official WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series mobile app and enhanced season-long recognition for overall series leaders. The new app provides fans with event schedules, results, standings, rider profiles, venue information, and exclusive content, helping connect audiences around the world with the sport throughout the season.”

OLYMPIC CONNECTIONS

Olympic spirit is a common theme of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series tour this season, with events taking place at four different Olympic Winter Games host regions and riders positioning for selection to the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympic Games.

Lake Placid, host of the 1932 and 1980 Olympic Winter Games, has sustained its Olympic legacy for nearly a century while retaining its status as a prominent region on the world sporting stage. The season opened May 1 in MONA YongPyong (South Korea), an Olympic venue during the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, and moved to Europe for the summer before returning to North America to close out the season with stops at Soldier Hollow (Salt Lake City 2002, 2034), Whistler (Vancouver 2010), and Lake Placid.

The UCI Mountain Bike World Championships will take place August 26-30 in Val di Sole, Italy.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series races in Lake Placid will take place at two world class Olympic venues. XCC World Cups are scheduled for Friday at Mt Van Hoevenberg for men and women in the Elite and U23 divisions, followed by XCO World Cups on Saturday. Downhill races for Elite and Junior men and women will be contested at Whiteface Mountain, with two Qualification rounds on Saturday and Finals on Sunday. Training and racing schedules are subject to change. For schedule updates and further details, go to: WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series – Lake Placid.

RIDERS TO WATCH

Cross-Country

    • Christopher Blevins (Specialized Factory Racing, USA): The two-time Olympian won the XCC and XCO overall UCI World Cup titles last year, becoming the first American overall cross-country champion since Ned Overend won the title in 1991. The Colorado native won the first five UCI World Cup XCC races of the season in 2025, something that had never been done before.
    • Other regular contenders who have consistently been on the podium in 2026 include Bjorn Riley (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team), a young American who made his Elite debut in 2025, charismatic Luca Martin (Cannondale Factory Racing, France) and Adrien Boichis (Specialized Factory Racing, France.
    • Jenny Rissveds (Canyon XC Racing, Sweden): A double-winner in Lake Placid last year, she is the reigning UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Champion and Rio 2016 Olympic gold medalist. She finished strong last season with eight UCI World Cup wins across XCC and XCO and was second overall in both disciplines.
    • Olympic silver medalist Haley Batten (Specialized Factory Racing) and Savilia Blunk (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) have been the top American riders in the women’s field.
    • Evie Richards (Trek-Unbroken XC, Great Britain) won the overall XCC title last year, while Samara Maxwell (Decathlon Ford Racing Team, New Zealand), the reigning overall XCO World Cup champion, is taking the year off from racing.

Downhill

    • Jackson Goldstone (Santa Cruz Syndicate, Canada): Five UCI World Cup victories last season carried Goldstone to the overall title as the 22-year-old secured the trophy over five-time UCI World Champion Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity, France) and Luca Shaw (Canyon Downhill, USA) on the final day of the season at Mont-Saint-Anne, Quebec.
    • Asa Vermette (Frameworks Racing, USA) made his elite debut in style, topping the podium in MONA YongPyong while Bruni settled for second and Amaury Pierron (COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF by Riding Addiction, France) was third.
    • Canadian Finn Iles (Specialized Gravity) has been in the form of his life since the start of the season, returning to the top step of the podium with back-to-back victories in Leogang (Austria) and Lenzerheide (Switzerland).
    • Valentina Höll (Commencal Schwalbe by Les Orres), a four-time UCI Downhill World Cup overall winner (2021, 2023, 2024, 2025) and four-time UCI Downhill World Champion (2022-2025) from Austria, is with a new team this season which includes a new bike and new management. Her main contenders, Gracey Hemstreet (Norco Race Division, Canada) and Tahnée Seagrave (Orbea FMD Racing, Great Britain) are joined by American rising star Anna Newkirk (Frameworks Racing / TRP), who claimed her maiden UCI World Cup in Lenzerheide.

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Every UCI Cross-country and UCI Downhill World Cup round will be broadcast live and on demand through Warner Bros. Discovery channels and platforms, including Eurosport (across Europe) and TNT Sports (in the UK and Ireland) with streaming available on HBO Max and through WBD’s global broadcast partners, including MTBWS TV now launched in the U.S.

MEDIA ACCREDITATION

The WBD media accreditation platform is open and can be accessed through this link: https://media-admin.ucimtbworldseries.com. Please note that the deadline to submit media accreditation requests for Lake Placid is September 25.

Please reach out to the following contacts with any inquiries or issues related to the accreditation process:

MEDIA CONTACTS