MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 2024 – CANYON RIDERS AIMING FOR GLORY IN ANDORRA

With the best of the best in Downhill and Cross-Country (XC) mountain biking heading for the World Championships at the Pal Arinsal ski resort in Andorra, Spain between 28 August-1 September 2024, we’ve prepared a run-down of the Canyon Downhill and XC riders vying for a podium place or trying to establish themselves as a hot prospect for the future.

The small mountain village of Pal Arinsal plays host this year. It is nestled in the Pyrenees between Spain and France, boasting a 1.9km downhill track which drops 458m from start to finish, plus a 4km cross-country (XCM) course, and a short-track (XCO) circuit. With an altitude of 1550m in the village, and the Atlantic ocean on one side and the Mediterranean on the other, the region is never too far away from wild weather, which can play havoc with form guides. Let’s see who’s dreaming of a rainbow jersey in Pal Arinsal to end their season on a high.

With nerves of steel and battle-scarred bodies, Downhill riders are not only adept at launching themselves out of the starting gate and sending it on hellish-looking courses without so much as an utterance of fear, but they regularly put their bodies on the line in a race where milliseconds can make the difference.

Although each athlete will be racing for their nations in national team kit, they’re all drawn from their trade teams and will be riding their trade team bikes. In Canyon’s case, the riders from Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team, Canyon CLLCTV FMD, and Canyon-Pirelli development team will be using Canyon’s Sender CFR, a downhill bike built with supple suspension, slack and adjustable geometry and a low centre of gravity to smooth out the roughest courses and toughest tracks.

• Luca Shaw (US), Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team. Luca joined Canyon CLLCTV in 2022 and regularly features in the top 10 of the World Cup circuit. Currently ranked 6th best in the world, his highest position since his debut in 2013, he’ll be looking to put that consistency to good use on the physical Pyrenean course.

• Mille Johnset (NO), Canyon CLLCTV Factory Team. Currently ranked 7th in the world, Mille is another rider enjoying year-on-year progression. Her summer form looks promising for Andorra with 2nd in the World Cup round in Haute-Savoie, and 2nd in the Norwegian National Championships.

• Gloria Scarsi (IT), Canyon CLLCTV-Pirelli. A former junior road and track rider, Scarsi first switched to Enduro and this year made the decision to dedicate herself to Downhill full time. Scarsi’s first full season on the circuit brought a brace of top tens and a national championship title at the recent Italian national champions.
• Henri Kiefer (DE), Canyon CLLCTV-Pirelli. As an 18-year old Henri’s gold medal stunned the crowd at the 2023 Junior World Championships on his Fort William debut last year. Injury at the start of his 2024 season wasn’t part of the plan but he recovered well to pick up an Elite National Men's title in Germany earlier this month. He’s now stepping up at the 2024 World Championships, racing in the Elite Men's category, and looking to establish himself at the Elite level.
• Tahnee Seagrave (UK), Canyon CLLCTV FMD. Tahnee’s meteoric rise to become one of the household names of downhill racing started in 2012 where, as a 17-year old, she claimed 2nd in the Junior World Championships, going one better in 2013 to take Junior gold in Pietermartizburg. The step-up to the Elite Women’s category came naturally as Tahnee podiumed in Hafjell/Lillehammer in 2014 and, whether in National Championships, World Cups or the World Championships, she’s rarely been far from the podium since. Wins evaded her early years in the Elites but she was back to the top step in 2017, enjoying a purple period until 2019. 2023 was a frustrating year for Tahnee but 1st place in Val di Sole this year proved she has plenty of fight and power left to give.
• Oliver Zwar (SW), Canyon CLLCTV FMD. Three-time Swedish national Downhill champion, Zwar has had a mixed 2024 season compared to his high-performing standards. Still, with experience on his side, a deep familiarisation with podium, and a rad new ride kit, you can never rule out the plucky Swede.

• Phoebe Gale (UK), Canyon CLLCTV FMD. At 20 years old and with several Junior World Cup victories to her name, Gale is picking up the experience to trouble the top 10 at the Elite level. She’ll be looking to cement her growing reputation with the advantage of having moral support and advice from GB team mate Tahnee Seagrave.
• Henry Kerr (IR), Canyon CLLCTV-Pirelli. After dominating as a junior, Henry's step up to elite category was punctuated by completing his masters degree in mechanical design engineering. Despite his relative inexperience, the talented Irishman still managed to score a top 10 at the 2022 DH World Championships in Les Gets. A podium place this year at the Snow Bike World Champs shows Henry has the handling skills that might make a big difference in Andorra.
• Also in the start gate in Andorra/Pal Arinsal will be Rudi Eichhorn (UK, Canyon CLLCTV FMD) and Lucas Lagneau (FR, Canyon CLLCTV-Pirelli), both competing in the junior category.

Not content with just one race of scorched lungs and lactic-filled leg muscles, these days cross country athletes have three opportunities to enter the hurt locker. The short track (XCC) course is a 1.1km circuit featuring ramps, descents, tight turns, natural obstacles and multiple flat-out sprints. The longer Olympic distance (XCO) and, new for 2024, Cross-Country Relay (XCR) races will be held on a 4km circuit featuring similar features but with the added complication 160m of climbing per lap.

The bike of choice for Canyon cross-country athletes is the Lux World Cup CFR. Canyon’s XC rocket is designed with one of the lightest full-suspension MTB frames on the market, meaning it climbs like a dream, yet its geometry and shock tuning allows it to rip descents with confidence-inspiring control. This year you can expect to see it powering riders from Canyon CLLCTV XCO, Alpecin-Deceuninck and Fenix-Deceuninck.

• Luca Schwarzbauer (DE), Canyon CLLCTV. The serial world cup winner, current German national champion and winner of the short track race in Pal Arinsal last year, Luca is a hot prospect for victory in 2024.

• Loana Lecomte (FR), Canyon CLLCTV. Current French XCO and XCC national champion, and winner of the XCO World Cup round in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Loana was on great form until she crashed heavily at the Olympics. Now Loana will be looking to salvage a season that held so much promise with a strong showing in Andorra.
• Adair Prieto (MX), Canyon CLLCTV. Stepping up from U23 level this year, Adair will be looking to demonstrate his potential by cracking the top 20 at elite level.
• Thibaut Francois (ES), Canyon CLLCTV. As a promising Junior, Thibaut stepped to U23 level in 2023. At just 20 years old he’s got time on his side to gain experience and develop into a world-class mountain bike racer, but what he lacks on his palmarès he more than makes up for in ambition.

• Sam Gaze (NZ), Alpecin-Deceuninck. After last season’s XCC world championship win in Glentress, the Kiwi rider has already scored two elite World Cup wins in Val di Sole and Mairiporã this year. He’s rarely been outside the top 10 wherever he’s competed this year, so he’s got more than enough potential to be a strong challenger for a podium place this year.

• Puck Pieterse (NL), Fenix-Deceuninck. Puck reportedly notched up her highest ever TSS score after the finish of the Tour de France Femmes, just two short weeks ago, so it remains to be seen whether that intense block of road racing will pay off here. But, if the past seasons are anything to go by, the gutsy, determined and supremely talented, multi-discipline Dutch rider will give it everything she has left in the tank.

• Ronja Eibl (DE), Fenix-Deceuninck. Podium places in the XCO and XCC German national championship this July should give Ronja the confidence to put in a good showing on the world’s stage.

1. For all photos please state credit as 'Boris Beyer' unless 'Ross Bell' is indicated in the photo file name.

2. The full UCI Mountain Bike World Championships event takes place from August 26th to September 1st, 2024. More information can be found here: https://events.palarinsal.com/en/palarinsalandorra2024

3. Further details on athlete results can be found at MTBData.com.

4. For interview requests with any riders, please make contact with your local Canyon contact or, if you have details, directly with the teams.

5. Additional photo assets can be found in this Downhill folder, and this XC folder.