Max Commencal, Tracy Moseley, Greg Minnaar and Stan Day are the latest to be recognised for their contribution to mountain biking, joining other legends of the sport including Rachel Atherton (2021), Steve Peat (2018) and Gary Fisher (1988) as members of the prestigious group.
The quartet will officially be inducted at a ceremony that is being held in conjunction with the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series season finale at The Golden Arrows – a new annual awards event taking place on October 4 at the Lake Placid Olympic Center.
But ahead of their enrollment, here’s why each is a worthy inductee of one of mountain biking’s biggest honours.
MAX COMMENCAL
Commencal is well-known for his eponymous bike brand, Commencal Bicycles, which he founded in Andorra in 2000, and his role in the success of some of Downhill’s biggest names including Amaury Pierron (COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF by Riding Addiction), Vali Höll (Commencal/Schwalbe by Les Orres) and Myriam Nicole (COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF by Riding Addiction).
His story in the sport precedes the turn of the millennium though, and he was also the founder and head designer of Sunn bicycles – the brand responsible for Nicolas Vouilloz’s record 10 UCI World Championship titles.
Outside of designing race-winning machines, he has also been a driving force behind the professionalisation of downhill racing from the format’s formative days through to the modern era.
TRACY MOSELEY
British rider Moseley is one of the greats of Gravity, having dominated both Downhill and Enduro during her storied career. The pinnacle of the former came during the late 2000s and early 2010s when she won two UCI Downhill World Cup overall titles (2006 and 2011) and the 2010 UCI Downhill World Championships. After transitioning to Enduro, she clinched three consecutive Enduro World Series titles between 2013 and 2015.
Although she stepped away from Enduro in 2016 to start a family, she returned to the format’s e-MTB iteration in 2020 and still competes despite starting her career more than three decades ago.
Outside of racing, Moseley is a trailblazer and inspiration for generations of women in the sport, and has mentored some of the biggest names of the sport including Evie Richards (Trek-Unbroken XC), Ella Conolly and Harriet Harnden (AON Racing).
GREG MINNAAR
The G.O.A.T of Downhill, Greg Minnaar’s professional career is unlikely to be replicated in its success or longevity. The South African made his UCI World Cup debut in 1997 in Stellenbosch and didn’t hang up his helmet until the final round of the 2024 season. During that 27-year career, he won everything there was to in the sport, including three overall titles (2001, 2005 and 2008), four UCI Downhill World Championships (2003, 2012, 2013 and 2021), and 22 UCI World Cups and 86 podiums from 167 starts.
The 44-year-old is still an ever-present at race weekends too in his new role as Team Director for Norco x adidas Race Division, where he has been influential in Gracey Hemstreet’s (Norco x adidas Race Division) progression from top-10 regular to three-time UCI Downhill World Cup winner and consistent podium finisher.
STAN DAY
The fourth and final inductee is SRAM co-founder Stan Day. After introducing the Grip Shift to the world in the late 1980s, the Chicago-based component manufacturer has grown to become an integral groupset manufacturer across mountain bike, road cycling and triathlon, and its umbrella of brands include RockShox (suspension), Quarq (power meters) and Hammerhead (cycling technology company).
Day was the company’s CEO from 1987 until 2019, and oversaw some of the biggest developments in componentry the sport has ever seen, including the universal derailleur hanger, a shift to 1x drivetrains and wireless shifting.
In addition to helping drive groundbreaking innovations, Day is also a director on the board of World Bicycle Relief – an international non-profit that specialises in bicycle distribution programs to aid poverty relief in developing countries.
