Gravel, MTB enduro and bike polo among seven additions to UCI Cycling World Championships lineup in 2027

Six events and new track categories for juniors have been added to the multi-discipline UCI Cycling World Championships in 2027, the second edition taking place August 24-September 5 in the Haute-Savoie department of France.

The 2027 Cycling World Championships will include 20 distinct competitions, located at 12 different sites in south-west France. Glasgow and across Scotland held the first joint cycling championships in 2023 with 13 disciplines consolidated across 10 days.

Dedicated events for gravel, esports, mountain bike enduro, pump track and junior track will be added to the singular Cycling Worlds format. Two new specialities will be introduced as well - indoor cycle speedway and bike polo.

“These combined UCI Cycling World Championships were part of my vision when I was elected UCI President in 2017. This vision became a reality in 2023 in Glasgow and across Scotland, and we are now building on what we created in Scotland, in an even wider range of cycling specialities," UCI President David Lappartient said in a press release.

The UCI and the local organising committee announced Tuesday a general programme for the 13 days of competitions which will recognise 281 titles. While site locations were confirmed, the dates of the different competitions were not confirmed.

Also revealed was the road race circuit to be used for the Road World Championships in 2027. A 13.3km circuit would be used for all categories, though the number of laps for junior, U23 and elite riders was not confirmed yet. 

The start and finish in Sallanches sees the road race return after five decades, last contested in 1980 where Bernard Hinault won the men's world title and Beth Heiden won for the women using a 13km circuit. France last hosted the Road World Championships in Plouay in 2000. 

Each of the road race laps will include 285 metres of elevation gain, including the return of the Côte de Domancy, a 2.5km ascent with maximum gradients of 16%. According to the press release, the use of a similar circuit "marks a return to tradition and should encourage a record number of spectators to attend the event".

Of the 12 different venues for 'Super Worlds', 11 are spread across the Haute-Savoie region, stretching from the Grand Massif in the east where mountain bike marathon and enduro champions will be crowned to Rumille, 106km to the west, where all Para-cycling road competitions will be held. 

All track events will be held at Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, the same velodrome which hosted the Paris Olympic Games, 350km away from the central area of La Roche-sur-Foron. Organisers did say that new competitions for Junior track should take place before the official date of the 'Super Worlds' programme, but did not provide exact dates.

The UCI plans to hold the joint championships as a quadrennial event, which, if the pattern follows, would be in the year preceding the Olympic Games.

Since the original announcement was made three years ago that Haute-Savoie would host the championships, one new event has been included on the schedule: cycle speedway racing. This discipline is held on short, oval dirt tracks with riders using short wheel-based, single-speed bikes in lap-based competitions among individuals and teams.

The other introduction for world titles is bike polo, which was contested as an exhibition sport at the 1908 London Olympic Games and now holds global competitions on hard-court surfaces with three-rider teams. 

The UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships will continue to be held separately, typically near the end of the winter season in February.

Image 1 of 1

UCI Cycling World Championships event lineup

• 2027 UCI Road World Championships: Sallanches - Domancy, Pays du Mont-Blanc (road races) and Lake Annecy (time trials)
• 2027 UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships: Rumilly
• 2027 UCI Gran Fondo World Championships: Thônes - La Clusaz, Aravis Massif
• 2027 UCI Track World Championships: Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines
• 2027 UCI Junior Track World Championships: Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines
• 2027 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships: Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines
• 2027 UCI Mountain Bike Cross-country World Championships: Les Gets, Portes du Soleil
• 2027 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships: Grand Massif
• 2027 UCI Mountain Bike Downhill World Championships: Les Gets, Portes du Soleil
• 2027 UCI Mountain Bike Enduro World Championships: Grand Massif
• 2027 UCI Pump Track World Championships: Saint-Pierre-en-Faucigny
• 2027 UCI BMX Racing World Championships: Annecy
• 2027 UCI BMX Freestyle Park World Championships: Cluses
• 2027 UCI BMX Freestyle Flatland World Championships: Cluses
• 2027 UCI Trials World Championships: Sallanches, Pays du Mont-Blanc
• 2027 UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships: Rochexpo Haute-Savoie Mont-Blanc, La Roche-sur-Foron
• 2027 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships: Evian-les-Bains
• 2027 UCI Gravel World Championships: Châtel, Portes du Soleil
• 2027 UCI Indoor Cycle Speedway World Championships: Rochexpo Haute-Savoie Mont-Blanc, La Roche-sur-Foron
• 2027 UCI Bike Polo World Championships: Rochexpo Haute-Savoie Mont-Blanc, La Roche-sur-Foron.