The UCI announce the return of mountain bike cross-country Eliminator (XCE) to the 2017 World Cup roster with eight city-based rounds.

>>> The story behind THAT Nino Schurter photo

What is XCE?

Raced over short and technical courses in heats of four riders at a time, XCE is a mixture of cross-country Olympic, for the type of course, and four-cross, for the format.

In line with the strategy to develop women’s cycling implemented by the UCI the Eliminator World Cup will offer equal prize money for men and women.

Watch the vid below to see what XCE is…

XCE was part of the World Cup circuit for three seasons but never really took off with the online viewing public to the degree that it arguably deserved.

The series is returning due to UCI’s partnership with City Mountainbike, organisers who specialise in the staging of XC-style events in urban settings. City Mountainbike will be responsible for all aspects of the event organisation, such as the course set-up, official timing and television production.

Maybe City Mountainbike can crack the XCE nut and sort out some TV/internet coverage that gets across the intensity and genuine excitement that XCE can deliver in the right circumstances.

From May in Volterra (Italy) to October in Beirut (Lebanon), the 2017 UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Cup will visit eight cities in seven countries from three continents.

2017 UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Cup calendar

Volterra (ITA) – 5-6.05.2017*
Columbus (USA) – 3-4.06.2017
Waregem (BEL) – 24-25.06.2017
Bangkok (THA) – 29-30.07.2017*
Winterberg (GER) – 26-27.08.2017
Apeldoorn (NED) – 2-3.09.2017*
Antwerp (BEL) – 23-24.09.2017
Beirut (LIB) – 15-16.10.2017*

*Pending confirmation by National Federation

The XCE season will finish with the 2017 UCI Urban Cycling World Championships, which will feature XCE, trials and BMX Freestyle Park. The first edition of these Worlds will take place in China during the final quarter of the year.

The UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Cup will offer nations qualification points for the UCI World Championships, and the two events together constitute an “attractive calendar that does the discipline justice”.

UCI President Brian Cookson said: “I am delighted by this partnership with City Mountainbike, which enables us to relaunch a discipline that is spectacular and popular with fans. With this new UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Cup, we confirm our desire to bring our sport to where the public is, in the heart of cities. As with trials and BMX Freestyle Park, Eliminator requires minimum logistics, which fits in with the desire of cities to organise events that use temporary installations. The international character of this first edition proves that the format appeals to cities throughout the world and we are delighted by that.”

Kristof Bruyneel, Manager of City Mountainbike, declared: “City Mountainbike is proud to have been chosen by the UCI to set up this new UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Cup. As organisers, we will use our know-how, recognised by XCE community, and contribute further to the discipline’s expansion throughout the world.”