Les Gets will serve as the final rehearsal before the World Championships: favorites, schedules, and how to watch for free

The XCO World Cup returns after the summer break, and it does so with one of the most important events of the season. Les Gets will bring together from August 20 to 23 a good part of the best specialists in the world in what will be the last major international test before the World Championship in Val di Sole. Mathieu van der Poel and Samara Maxwell headline two of the most anticipated comebacks.

XCO World Cup Les Gets 2026: favorites, schedules, and where to watch for free 

The wait is over. After the summer break, the XCO World Cup returns this weekend in Les Gets, Haute-Savoie, one of the most recognizable and spectacular venues on the international calendar.

The French town will host from August 20 to 23 XCC, XCO, and downhill events, although for cross-country specialists, all attention will be focused on the Short Track on Friday and, especially, on the elite XCO races on Sunday.

The French event also arrives at a key moment in the calendar. With the World Championship in Val di Sole already on the horizon, Les Gets will be the great dress rehearsal before the fight for the rainbow jersey. After several weeks without a World Cup, it will be the time to see who has made the best use of this preparation period and, above all, what the real hierarchy is among the favorites for the World Championship.

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In addition to the points for a general classification that remains very open, the weekend will allow a direct measurement of a good part of the cyclists aspiring to become world champions.

And few comebacks will generate as much anticipation as that of Mathieu van der Poel.

Van der Poel returns, but the World Cup has already shown that no one will have it easy

All eyes in the men's race will inevitably be on Mathieu van der Poel. The Dutchman will compete in mountain biking in Les Gets before contesting the World Championship in Val di Sole, one of his major goals for the end of the season.

His presence completely changes the dimension of the race, but it would be a mistake to think that his return automatically makes him the man to beat.

The level of the XCO World Cup has risen significantly and during this season we have seen how a new generation has firmly established itself in the top positions. The speed of the races, the equality among the best, and the enormous specialization of the current XCO riders mean that even a great performance from Van der Poel may not be enough to win a race like Les Gets.

The Dutchman already experienced this in his previous foray. His last mountain bike race was on September 1, 2025, when he competed in the World Championship in Crans-Montana and finished 29th. Before that, he had been sixth in the World Cup in Haute-Savoie. Now he is repeating a similar plan: returning to the World Cup and using it as a final test before the World Championship.

But he will face a field that arrives with momentum.

Charlie Aldridge has just been crowned European champion in both XCC and XCO, a double victory that confirms the extraordinary form of the Briton.

Adrien Boichis and Luca Martin have been two of the most powerful cyclists in the recent races and are part of that new generation that is changing the hierarchy of international XCO. Martin will also have the support of the French crowd and will return to the stage where he already knows what it means to win.

We will also have to closely follow Bjorn Riley, who arrives more motivated than ever after his recent podium finishes and is fully established among the riders capable of contesting a World Cup victory.

Even so, trying to make a closed list of candidates is practically impossible. Dario Lillo, Filippo Colombo, or Victor Koretzky, if he finally returns to competition after his injury, have enough level to perfectly finish on the podium.

Les Gets will therefore be an unbeatable opportunity to discover where Van der Poel stands in relation to the current best specialists before they all meet again in Val di Sole.

Samara Maxwell returns and has already shown that she comes prepared to win

The women's race will also have a return of enormous importance. Samara Maxwell returns to the World Cup after a long absence and does so just before one of the decisive moments of the season.

The big question was how much she would need to regain competitive rhythm, but her first appearance has cleared up much of the doubts. The New Zealander won a race in France last weekend with considerable authority, a performance that suggests she can arrive in Les Gets ready to directly enter the fight for the podium.

It won't be easy.

Sina Frei arrives in one of the best possible moments after being crowned European champion in XCC and XCO. The continental double places the Swiss among the top references before Les Gets and, by extension, also for the World Championship.

And alongside her will be Jenny Rissveds, who this season has been the great rival or directly the dominator in practically every race she enters. The Swede also has great memories of Les Gets, where in the previous edition she managed to complete the double by winning both the XCC and the XCO.

As in the men's race, the list of favorites is practically endless. Alessandra Keller, Martina Berta, Ronja Blöchlinger, Savilia Blunk, or Evie Richards, among others, have enough level to enter the fight for the top positions.

The women's race will also be, therefore, a particularly important snapshot of the form of the main candidates for the rainbow jersey.

Schedules  and how to watch the XCO World Cup of Les Gets 2026

The cross-country competition will begin on Friday with the Short Track, while the XCO races will take place on Sunday.

Friday, August 21 – Short Track

Sunday, August 23 – XCO

How to watch and follow the XCO World Cup of Les Gets 2026 for free

As usual, all elite races of the Les Gets World Cup will be broadcast live through MAX, Eurosport, and the rest of the platforms associated with the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series. Both the Short Track on Friday and the XCO events on Sunday will have live broadcasts.

From the start to the finish, we will follow the evolution of the race, the groups, attacks, differences, incidents, and all the important movements that occur in Les Gets.