World Cup racing will look a little different in 2024. There are new venues in South America, North America and Europe to look forward to across disciplines. Some things will stay the same, though. That’s a good thing for Canadian fans as Mont-Sainte-Anne returns to host the final round of cross country and downhill racing in October.
Here are the quick numbers: the 2024 World Cup will span 10 countries on three continents over 15 race weekends. That includes six new race venues (sort of) with the XC Marathon (XCM) calendar still to be announced.
New Venues for all disciplines
One exciting element of the announcement is new race venues. In South America, this includes two stops in Brazil, one in Mairiporã and another in Araxá. Those two venues kick off the cross country season. The XC crowd will also get the only U.S. stop, heading to another new venue in Mt Van Hoevenberg, Lake Placid in New York. One last “new” venue for the XC racers is a stop in Crans-Montana, Switzerland. The venue has hosted international enduro racing before but the XCO/XCC course will be all new and the cross country racers will have the venue to themselves that weekend.
The plethora of new cross country venues, says UCI President David Lappartient, “Testifies to the popularity of the sport, which the International Olympic Committee has just confirmed will be on the programme for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.”
Downhill racers get one new venue in the seven-stop calendar when the World Cup visits Poland for the first time. Bielsko-Biała will host a combined downhill and enduro race weekend in May. That’s one of two new venues for the six-stop enduro World Cup (EDR) series. Enduro racers will also visit another new venue in Aletsch Arena in the Valais region of Switzerland.
Returning classics and another MSA finale
Along with the new venues, several iconic courses return for all disciplines. Fort William kicks off the downhill series in May. Finale Ligure moves from the end of the enduro season to a new position as the opening EDR round. Nove Mesto, Leogang and Val di Sole are all back, as is the 10-day combined World Cup in Haute Savoie region of…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Canadian Cycling Magazine…