Before a single World Cup started this year, the most controverisal story in mountain biking wasn’t who would win. It was who would be allowed on the podium.
When Warner Bros Discovery announced it would eliminate the sport’s iconic five-rider podium, a tradition born in 1994 when Cadel Evans finished fifth in Cairns and the organisers extended the stage to honour him, athletes revolted.
More than 120 riders, including Nino Schurter, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, Tom Pidcock and Puck Pieterse, signed a statement led by rider rep Rebecca Henderson, demanding the five-rider format stay.
“For more than 30 years, the podium at the mountain bike world cup has been five riders,” the letter read. “Chasing a podium has always meant a top 5… WBD have only one reason for reducing it to three riders: conformity.”
The riders’ argument was simple: Fifth place is often the breakthrough ride that gets a racer their next contract. Smaller teams gain visibility and crucial sponsor value.
It was the rare moment mountain bikers publicly organised and pushed back. For a few weeks, it felt like the soul of the sport was on the line.
Then the season started, the cameras rolled and WBD fined a couple riders and simply moved on.
WBD’s victory lap
Now, at year’s end, WBD has released a glowing, self-congratulatory report about the “success” of its reforms.
They cite: 87 million views across their platforms, 250,000 new social followers, 440,000 on-site spectators, 5 million website page views.
Their reforms “elevated the experience for athletes and fans.” They list improved broadcast graphics, new qualification systems, more data overlays and original documentaries as proof they’ve modernised the sport.
But nowhere in the 2,000-word celebration do they mention the three-person podium. The change riders demanded be reversed. The one that cuts visibility, sponsor value and career opportunities.
For riders, the issue was never cosmetic
WBD framed the change as streamlining and aligning with other sports. Riders framed it as erasing a piece of mountain biking’s identity.
And as the statement put it:
“This is our sport and we won’t let conformity strip away its character.”
The five-rider podium might not matter to broadcast executives counting eyeballs. But for racers fighting for bonuses, sponsor renewals and visibility, it matters a lot.
The final irony? WBD’s own end-of-season data shows the sport has never had more attention. More fans,…
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