Wilier-Vittoria: UCI MTB World Series 2026, Round 3 / Leogang - Preview

The Cross-country World Cup is about to enter one of the most exciting stretches of the season, with two back-to-back race weekends featuring some of the calendar’s most anticipated events. The action kicks off this weekend with Round 3 in Leogang, Austria, where the Wilier-Vittoria MTB Factory Team will be in action from Friday 12 to Sunday 14 June.

The Epic Bikepark Saalfelden Leogang is Austria’s largest mountain bike destination, boasting more than 90 kilometres of trails spread across seven mountains. Nestled in the Northern Limestone Alps, part of the Eastern Alps, it lies just a short distance from the picturesque town of Zell am See and around 70 kilometres south of Salzburg. For 2026, the cross-country courses have undergone a complete redesign, introducing several new features, including a rock garden near the start-finish link and a greater emphasis on natural woodland trails, with technical descents expected to play a key role. Even so, the course is still likely to favour the strongest climbers.

For the third World Cup round, Wilier-Vittoria will once again field its full-strength line-up. XCO World silver medallist Simone Avondetto, who claimed his first-ever World Cup podium in Korea, and Italian champion Luca Braidot will lead the team in the elite men’s race as usual. They will be joined by Juri Zanotti, who has just successfully defended his Italian XCC title, while Sofie Heby Pedersen will represent the team in the elite women’s field.

In the U23 categories, Gustav Heby Pedersen will be aiming for another strong performance in the men’s race, while Canada’s Ella MacPhee will target a top result in the women’s event. Elian Paccagnella will miss the race after being sidelined in recent weeks by mononucleosis.

WHERE TO WATCH THE LEOGANG WORLD CUP?

CLICK HERE to find out which channels/platforms are broadcasting the World Cup in your country. Here are the local start times for the XCC and XCO races, so you won’t miss a single pedal stroke from the Wilier-Vittoria riders!

Friday June 12th

10:35 - 11:00 – UCI Cross-country Short Track World Cup | Women U23 (MacPhee)

11:25 - 11:50 – UCI Cross-country Short Track World Cup | Men U23 (G.Pedersen)

17:30 - 17:55 – UCI Cross-country Short Track World Cup | Women Elite (S.Pedersen)

18:20 - 18:45 – UCI Cross-country Short Track World Cup | Men Elite (Avondetto, Braidot, Zanotti)

Sunday June 14th

08:30 - 09:50 – UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup | Women U23 (MacPhee)

10:10 - 11:30 – UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup | Men U23 (G.Pedersen)

11:55 - 13:25 – UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup | Women Elite (S.Pedersen)

13:50 - 15:20 – UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup | Men Elite (Avondetto, Braidot, Zanotti)