Saalfelden Leogang will once again be the centre of the international mountain bike scene in 2025. From 5 to 8 June, the best athletes from all over the world will meet in Austria's largest bike region Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn to compete for victory in the cross-country, downhill and enduro disciplines. As the triple header of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, the event promises thrilling races, a unique atmosphere and exciting competitions at the highest level in Salzburger Land.
The varied terrain and challenging trails in the Epic Bikepark Leogang provide the ideal backdrop for breathtaking races, where athletes and fans will get their money's worth. At the beginning of June 2025, the Saalfelden Leogang region will be the venue for a triple-header, where the elite of mountain biking will compete in three disciplines: the endurance specialists in cross-country (XCO and XCC), the speed fanatics in downhill (DHI) and the technical specialists in enduro (EDR). Since the first UCI Mountain Bike World Cup was held in 2010, the region has established itself as one of the top locations on the international racing calendar.
‘After a year's break, we are delighted to welcome the cross-country (XCO) and cross-country short track (XCC) disciplines back to Saalfelden Leogang. The comeback of the XCO and XCC races shows the high esteem in which Saalfelden Leogang is held as a host for all mountain bike disciplines. The return of these race formats is a great success for us as organisers and will further strengthen the diversity and attractiveness of the event. We are looking forward to once again offering athletes and fans a perfect stage for exciting and high-calibre races and presenting the region as a top destination on the international mountain bike calendar.’ - Marco Pointner, Managing Director of Saalfelden Leogang Touristik GmbH
The event is part of the hugely expanded WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series race calendar, which takes the sport's best athletes through ten countries over seven months. The cross-country discipline starts in Araxá (Brazil) at the beginning of April, the enduro in Pietra Ligure (Italy) in May, before the downhill party begins a week later in Bielsko-Biała (Poland). The stop in Austria's largest bike region is the first of just two Triple Header events in the 2025 season.
‘I am delighted that Leogang will be back on the Mountain Bike World Series race calendar in 2025 and that we will be competing in short track and cross-country. In a way, the event is my home event in the World Cup. The fact that there are always so many of my fans in Leogang makes the races very special. From 2021 to 2023, things have always gone very well for me with three podium finishes in cross-country.’ - Laura Stigger, 2021 - 2023 on the podium at the UCI Cross-Country competitions in Leogang, very successful placings at the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series 2024
Will Vali Höll make the hat-trick?
Vali Höll, the local heroine from neighbouring Saalbach, provided goosebump moments in 2023 and 2024 with her downhill victories in front of tens of thousands of fans. Whether she manages to complete the hat-trick on the challenging course in 2025 remains to be seen. She is very much looking forward to it: ‘The atmosphere in Leogang is unique every time and I'm really looking forward to next year. Racing in front of a home crowd, with my family and friends behind me, is something very special. Of course, you also feel the pressure to live up to expectations, but a third win in Leogang would be amazing.’ - Vali Höll, Leogang winner 2023 and 2024, UCI Downhill World Champion 2022, 2023 and 2024
