On the back of his disappointment of not being included Team South Africa at the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, elite cross-country mountain biker Rourke Croeser has confirmed he will now focus on the 2014 UCI MTB Marathon World Championships which take place at the Cascades MTB Park in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday 29 July. Despite having […]
Riccardo Chiarini has tested positive for EPO
Italian mountain biker Riccardo Chiarini, who finished fourth overall in the 2014 Absa Cape Epic with partner Roel Paulissen of Belgium (Team Torpado Factory), has tested positive for unusually high levels of EPO. The former road professional was tested out-of-competition on May 7 this year by the UCI. The finding of excessive EPO (erythropoietin) was […]
Esther Süss searching for repeat performance
It has been four years since Swiss marathon star Esther Süss last tasted UCI MTB Marathon World Championships glory, but the 40-year-old believes that 2014 could be the year she returns to a familiar stomping ground at the Cascades MTB Park for the women’s 74km race on Sunday 29 June. The Wheeler iXS Pro Team star […]
Live Streaming to showcase XCM Worlds around the globe
Red Bull have helped fans of mountain bike racing worldwide follow the elite ranks as they race the World Cup. Marathon racing has lacked such coverage – although some events like the Sellaronda Hero have ensured they have live feeds for friends, family and fans – and of course the ABSA Cape Epic have offered […]
Dahle opts out of XCM Worlds Defence
The race for the women’s title at the UCI MTB Marathon World Championships has been thrown wide open with the confirmation that current world champ Gunn-Rita Dahle will not be on the startline to defend her title. Dahle has taken the bold move to forgo the defence of her marathon title to focus on her cross country […]
Langkawi International Mountain Bike Challenge 2014
There are only 130 days remaining in the countdown to the Langkawi International Mountain Bike Challenge 2014 and with over half a million Ringgit Malaysia (USD 150,000.00) up for grabs this event is destined to attract the pinnacle riders of the mountain bike community from all nationalities. This year there has been a major change to the […]
Cherise Stander hoping to harness Burry’s legacy
Following a tough start to the 2014 season, the iconic Cascades MTB Park and the legend of her late husband Burry could be the tonic that Cherise Stander needs as she heads into her maiden UCI MTB Marathon World Championships in Pietermaritzburg on 29 June. The Team RECM rider has had a tough start to […]
The Spectacle of Nove Mesto
Last race report I spoke of the romance and history of some big road races and how I wished mountain bike racing could be similar. This was of course, silly. Road racing might have hundreds of years of history, but what it does not have is over 20,000 crazy spectators crammed around a 4.5km course. […]
XCM Worlds course launched
The buzz ahead of the 2014 UCI MTB Marathon World Championships continues to build in KwaZulu-Natal’s capital as course designer Nick Floros and his team make the final tweaks to the widely anticipated route for of the global showcase. Floros and his team are hard at work as they look to wrap things up ahead […]
Nove Mesto World Cup Race Preview
Their food tastes a little different, and I am yet to taste the Czech Republic’s dirt but their single track that weaves across that dirt is some of the best I’ve ridden. Full of roots and natural doubles. It is loads of fun to practice on and should be a great track to race on come […]