After a barnstorming UCI World Cup debut in 2024, Lake Placid Olympic Region, New York (USA) became a firm favourite of riders and fans alike in the Cross-Country formats.
But the New York state venue wasn’t content with hosting only Endurance events and has added a UCI World Cup-worthy Downhill course, welcoming Gravity athletes for the first time this weekend.
The venue’s relatively unknown nature and its timing in the series makes it an interesting proposition, particularly in Downhill, where both overall leaders currently have narrow advantages with only two rounds to go.
SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW
After a summer of European trails, this weekend will be the first time that a lot of riders have gone between the race tape on North American soil this season.
Located 285 miles north of downtown Manhattan and a stone’s throw from the Canadian border, the Lake Placid Olympic Region might be best known for winter sports, but the site has a growing network of off-road trails perfect for mountain biking, centred around Mt Van Hoevenberg and Whiteface Mountain.
The former is the location of the Cross-country course, featuring rock gardens, a dual slalom course and a section that mimics the venue’s Olympic bobsled run.
Whiteface Mountain, meanwhile, is the setting of the new downhill track. Roughly 2km in length, the crafted course is packed full of steep, technical terrain and requires precise bike handling and fearless determination to come out on top.
MATHEMATICALLY POSSIBLE FOR MAXWELL
330 points is the big target for Samara Maxwell (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) as this is the advantage that the New Zealander needs by the end of Sunday to clinch her and her country’s first-ever overall series. The 23-year-old currently sits 323 points ahead of Jenny Rissveds (Canyon CLLCTV XCO), so a career-first Cross-country Olympic (XCO)-Cross-country Short Track (XCC) double is the easiest way of securing her crown before Mont-Sainte-Anne (Canada). But given the form of Rissveds, that will be easier said than done. The Swede is experiencing a purple patch, adding second place in the XCO to her UCI XCC World Cup win in Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide (Switzerland), and the UCI XCO World Champion will push Maxwell all the way to the line. Alessandra Keller (Thömus Maxon) is another worth keeping tabs on – the 2024 UCI XCO World Cup overall winner victorious in Lenzerheide and not out of contention in the title yet.
BLEVINS ON THE CUSP
Christopher Blevins (Specialized Factory Racing) is another rider with 330 points on his mind this weekend, as he looks to confirm his first UCI XCO overall series. The American’s 290-point lead over teammate Martin Vidaurre Kossmann (Specialized Factory Racing) means the XCO-XCC double is also a must, but unlike Maxwell, it’s something he’s managed twice this year. His recent form would suggest it’s beyond him, though, with it looking like he will stumble over the line to his title next week rather than seal things in style on home soil.
RICHARDS HOLDS FIRM, BLEVINS ALL-BUT CONFIRMED
The overall UCI XCC series are also still to be decided, but one is a lot tighter than the other. The women’s competition is currently separated by 110 points – Evie Richards (Trek Factory Racing-Pirelli) extending her advantage over the 2025 UCI XCC World Champion Alessandra Keller with a podium finish in Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide. The latter had been showing the consistency that propelled her to last year’s XCO-XCC overall double, but it looks like she might have left her title push too late, with the Brit arresting her mid-season dip in results.
The men’s meanwhile is effectively a foregone conclusion. Blevins missed the chance to take the title in Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide, but only needs to finish within the top 30 to be crowned UCI XCC World Cup overall winner. Even with his recent poor form – with a 26th-place finish last time out in Lenzerheide – he can afford to ride conservatively to claim the overall. Victor Koretkzy (Specialized Factory Racing) has looked imperious in his last two outings – defending his UCI XCC World Championship title and winning in Lenzerheide – while Luca Martin (Cannondale Factory Racing) and Charlie Aldridge (Cannondale Factory Racing) are favourites to spoil the Specialized party.
HÖLL GRINDING HER WAY TO ANOTHER OVERALL
On Saturday, it will have been 474 days since Valentina Höll (YT Mob) last won a UCI World Cup. The Austrian has won two UCI Downhill World Championships in that time – most recently in Champéry, Switzerland, at the start of September – but it’s a record that the 23-year-old won't want hanging over her during the off-season. Despite her winless streak, her consistent performances have left her top of the pile with two rounds to go, and the US has historically been a happy hunting ground, with Höll recording three wins at Snowshoe.
Her lead over second-place Gracey Hemstreet (Norco Race Division) was extended to 137 points after Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide, and she can clinch a fourth overall title in five years if she wins both qualifying and finals and Hemstreet fails to earn less than 177 points in Lake Placid Olympic Region. The Canadian – who has already won three UCI World Cups this season – isn’t one to go down without a fight, and will be extra motivated to take the title race to next week in Mont-Sainte-Anne. Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide winner Tahnée Seagrave (Orbea/FMD Racing) is the only other rider who can still mathematically win the overall series, and while the title is a distant prospect, the Brit is another favourite for Saturday’s finals.
ADVANTAGE BRUNI IN TWO-WAY TITLE TUSTLE
Just 100 points separate Loïc Bruni (Specialized Gravity) and Jackson Goldstone (Santa Cruz Syndicate), with the Frenchman leapfrogging the new UCI Downhill World Champion with a superior points haul in Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide.
Like Höll, Bruni has also claimed the overall title three times and has experience on his side when it comes to the pointy end of the season. Goldstone, meanwhile, showed a potential chink in his armour in Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide with his 25th-place finish, but will be targeting a return to the top of the podium to take the title to his backyard in Mont-Sainte-Anne.
Outside of the title race, other contenders for this Saturday’s finals include Bike Kingdom-Lenzerheide winner Amaury Pierron (Commencal/Muc-Off by Riding Addiction), Ronan Dunne (Mondraker Factory Racing DH) and home favourite Luca Shaw (Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team).
Racing gets underway in Lake Placid Olympic Region on Friday with the UCI Cross-country Short Track World Cup. Full schedule and event details are available here.
