Loudenvielle, located in the Hautes-Pyrénées region, hosted the Enduro World Series (EWS) in 2021 and this weekend also serves as the close of the 2022 EWS season. In 2023 it will once again host the EWS, but will welcome absolute a round of downhill of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup, on the weekend of 1 to 3 September 2023.
Source: press release
UCI President David Lappartient said: "After the Enduro World Series, I am delighted that our UCI Mountain Bike World Cup will also visit Loudenvielle, with a round for the specialists of the downhill. This fantastic and varied weekend of competition will provide broad international exposure for mountain biking, one of the goals of the UCI's partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery. Loudenvielle strengthens its commitment to mountain biking and offers a wonderful stage for top enduro and mountain bike athletes downhill of the world".
Michel Pelieu, President of Louron Valley and President of the Hautes-Pyrénées Department, said: "Five years ago in the Louron valley we hosted our first French Enduro Mountain Bike Cup. This was followed by the European Championships and two years later by the Enduro World Series, including the final round at Loudenvielle this year. We are very excited to organize a UCI Mountain Bike World Cup downhill round, as well as an Enduro World Series round, together with the UCI in 2023. The UCI Downhill World Cup round will take place on the Skyvall track, which it is both technical and very spectacular by nature. The downhill run is located between the mountain resorts of Peyregudes and Loudenvielle".
Chris Ball, CEO of ESO Sports, said: "Loudenvielle is a place well known to French cyclists and became a classic when it was first added to the Enduro World Series calendar in 2021, so much so that this is where we crown our series winners this year. As a multi-year host of the Tour de France, the area has cycling in its DNA and some of the best mountain bike terrain in the world.".
A new vision for mountain biking
As the UCI begins to deliver its new vision for the future of mountain biking, the organization will seek to utilize WBD's global scale and media platforms, while it has begun collaborating with WBD's two specialist organizations. ESO Sports is working in partnership with Discovery Sports Events - the event management and promotion division of WBD - to provide the organization, media for the production and broadcast, promotion and marketing of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup.
