The 2022 MTB World Championships - Day One

All photos: Jack Fletcher

While there is still one round to go in a long 2022 World Cup season, mountain bikers from around the globe have their eyes locked on the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships this week. The 2022 event is taking place in Les Gets, France and as such will likely see massive crowds for the title races, thanks to the huge following mountain biking has in France.

Monday was primarily a alow day where teams set their trucks and tents up, preparing for the week ahead. World Championships see riders race for their countries, but the support primarily comes from factory teams for the pro riders. Some nations have more support on the ground than others. This is most obvious for the Junior (U19) categories, with coaches on hand to assist with line selection as riders learn the fast lines for the Downhill or Cross-country courses.

With cross-country racing start on Wednesday with the Team Relay, XC riders have been first to arrive in Les Gets, spending the afternoon looking at lines and getting comfortable on the features.

From the sidelines, the main course features involve a lot of subtle technical terrain, like the ongoing off camber roots in the forest – on climbs and descents. Add a lot of powdery dust and these are slippery. Add rain and they are diabolical. They're a typical feature of just about any European XCO course.

There is also a man-made rock garden, although boulder field may be a better description. It's a dental surgeon's wet dream, with plenty of rocks well over hub height to stop riders right in their tracks. Expect a few well-worn lines through here by weeks end.

Les Gets is a ski resort so with that comes steep, grassy slopes. Again – a standard Euro feature that is often accompanied by many spectators smoking right on the course tape. The course in Les Gets has steep grass sections for climbs and descents. These will be super fast on the descents, and a place where the strongest can attack on the climbs.

Much of the rest has bike park features, like a huge BMX track, thanks to massive berms right above the start/finish line. In World Cup races here we have seen a couple of line options from the top riders and you can be sure that in a World Championships race the motivation to be creative and fast with lines will be big!

Stay tuned to our daily updates, including a Downhill course check later this week.