Lake Placid rounds off the XCO/XCC World Cup: titles up for grabs and a possible return of 32-inch bikes?

The XCO/XCC World Cup 2026 reaches its final stop. Just two weeks after Soldier Hollow, the best Cross Country specialists continue in the United States to compete in Lake Placid, New York, for the definitive closure of a season that still has several titles to be decided.

The situation is particularly interesting among the women. Jenny Rissveds arrives as the XCO overall leader, but Sina Frei still has mathematical chances to take the title this final weekend. In the men's category, Luca Martin has already mathematically secured the XCO overall after it was confirmed that Adrien Boichis, his only rival with options, will also not be in Lake Placid.

The Short Track is also open. Frei leads the women's XCC with 1,490 points, 100 more than Rissveds, while Luca Martin leads the men's with 1,240. Boichis is second with 1,210, but his absence leaves Mathis Azzaro, third with 1,144, as the main mathematical threat to Martin.

Dates and times (CEST) of the Lake Placid 2026 XCO/XCC World Cup

Lake Placid is six hours behind CEST time. All the times listed below are already converted to (CEST) based on the official schedule published by the organization.

Friday, October 2 – XCC

• 15:20 – XCC Women Under-23
• 16:10 – XCC Men Under-23
• 17:45 – XCC Women Elite
• 18:35 – XCC Men Elite

Saturday, October 3 – XCO

• 15:00 – XCO Women Under-23
• 17:00 – XCO Men Under-23
• 20:00 – XCO Women Elite
• 22:00 – XCO Men Elite

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It will also be a weekend shared with the Downhill World Cup, which will close its season on Sunday at Whiteface Mountain. The XCO and XCC will be held, as is customary at this venue, at Mt. Van Hoevenberg.

Where to watch the Lake Placid 2026 XCO/XCC World Cup

In Spain, the races can be followed through Eurosport and HBO Max. Additionally, at Brujulabike we will again provide minute-by-minute coverage of the two Elite XCO races.

• Friday 2 – XCC Women Elite: 17:45
• Friday 2 – XCC Men Elite: 18:35
• Saturday 3 – XCO Women Elite: 20:00
• Saturday 3 – XCO Men Elite: 22:00

All times are in CEST time.

Lake Placid puts the finishing touch on a very long season

The World Cup returns for the third year to Lake Placid and does so to definitively close the 2026 season. Mt. Van Hoevenberg offers a very different course than what the riders encountered two weeks ago in Soldier Hollow.

The area, located in the northern part of New York State and very close to the Canadian border, is mainly known for its winter Olympic past. The XCO circuit takes advantage of that heritage. The organization highlights its large berms, a characteristic section by the lake, a jump area, and a long descent through the forest with different possible lines.

It is a fast course that the teams know well, but choosing the right line and maintaining precision in the fast sections can make a difference.

The proximity between Soldier Hollow and Lake Placid has turned both events into practically a single North American block. There are only two weeks between them, and many of the teams have remained in the United States during this period, avoiding returning to Europe before facing the last trip of the season.

Jenny Rissveds and Sina Frei battle for the XCO World Cup

The big battle of the weekend will be in the women's category. Jenny Rissveds arrives in Lake Placid as the leader with 2,045 points, while Sina Frei occupies second place with 1,825. The 220 points that separate them keep the championship mathematically open before the final round.

Rissveds had the chance to practically seal the overall in Soldier Hollow, but her eighth place in the XCO, combined with Frei's third place, pushed the resolution to Lake Placid.

The Swiss rider also arrives with the rainbow jersey of XCO world champion and is completing one of the strongest end-of-season stretches of the entire field.

But if there is one rider who comes out stronger from Utah, it is Martina Berta. The Italian had a perfect weekend in Soldier Hollow, first winning the Short Track with an attack on the penultimate lap and the next day again imposed herself, this time in the XCO and again going solo.

Berta will therefore be one of the major references for partial victories in Lake Placid, alongside Rissveds and Frei.

We will also have to closely follow Alessandra Keller, Savilia Blunk, Gwendalyn Gibson, Laura Stigger, or Samara Maxwell. Gibson arrives particularly strengthened after finishing second in the XCO of Soldier Hollow, while Blunk finished fourth.

Luca Martin is already XCO champion, but still has work in the Short Track

The men's situation has completely changed compared to the lead-up to Soldier Hollow. Adrien Boichis decided not to compete in the last two North American rounds after starting his transition to the road, and once his absence was confirmed in Lake Placid as well, Luca Martin has mathematically secured the XCO World Cup 2026.

Martin arrives at the final round with 1,819 points compared to Boichis's 1,619.

That does not mean that the Frenchman can face the entire weekend without looking at the standings. In the XCC, there is still a title at stake. Martin leads that overall with 1,240 points, Boichis is second with 1,210, and Mathis Azzaro is third with 1,144. Boichis's absence eliminates one of his major rivals, but Azzaro still has mathematical options.

And for the partial victories, there are several names that arrive particularly strong. Samuel Gaze reappeared in the front line in Soldier Hollow with a spectacular victory in the XCC. The New Zealander started from very far back and climbed up to the front group before winning the sprint against Luca Martin and Charlie Aldridge. Now we will see if he can maintain that form.

In the XCO, it was Martin Vidaurre who confirmed his return to the highest level. The Chilean waited until the last turn to launch the decisive move and achieved his first victory of the season in the World Cup, ahead of Cole Punchard and Mathis Guay.

Martin, Aldridge, Azzaro, Bjorn Riley, Luca Braidot, David List, or Christopher Blevins are again part of the large group of candidates to be at the front in Lake Placid.

Among the important absences, the same ones that marked Soldier Hollow continue. Tom Pidcock, XCO world champion, will not return to MTB this season; Adrien Boichis, XCC world champion, will also not be on the grid; Victor Koretzky does not seem to be recovered yet from the injury he has been carrying all year, and Jofre Cullell remains out after the hand fracture that forced him to end his World Cup.

The 32-inch MTBs will have a second chance in Lake Placid

If Soldier Hollow was important sportingly, it also ended up becoming one of the most technically interesting races of the entire season.

The 32-inch bikes burst onto the World Cup with several different projects. Trek and SCOTT launched their new platforms, while Thömus already arrived with previous experience with its Lightrider R32, and CUBE is also developing its own prototype. Here we review all the 32" bikes that arrived at Soldier Hollow.

And they did not stay only in the boxes. Filippo Colombo and Fabio Püntener competed with the new SCOTT Spark 32", while Amos Riley, Evie Richards, and Gwendalyn Gibson did the same with the Trek prototype, even Gibson took the 32" Trek to the podium in the XCO.

Everything points to Lake Placid being another testing ground for these bikes. The teams traveled to the United States with the material prepared for the last two rounds and it would make sense for the prototypes seen in Utah to continue competing in New York.

Precisely for that reason, it would be strange to find new models now. The logistics of these last two World Cups were planned as a single block, and the teams traveled with practically all the necessary material for Soldier Hollow and Lake Placid.

That does not prevent some brand from having reserved a last big presentation for the season finale. After what happened two weeks ago, any strange movement within the boxes will again deserve attention.