UCI Releases Leogang EDR Course

On June 5th, 2024, the UCI released the course for Friday’s third round of the Enduro World Cup in Leogang, Austria.

On the 45.8-mile course riders will race for a total of 7.3 miles while descending 8100 vertical feet across the 6 timed stages. See the map of the course below.

It is important to note that the riders will have three lift-assisted transfers. Still, this will be a huge day on the bike for the racers, especially given that they must preride and race it on back-to-back days.

This course design is an especially audacious choice given the controversy of the first round in Finale Ligure when many riders struggled to complete the liaisons in the time required.

After diving into methods of designing an EDR course, BIKE learned that World Cup courses and liaison times are designed by the local organizing committee and approved by the UCI. This means that local officials have leeway to design courses to be as long and epic as they determine is feasible, even if some riders feel that a course is too ambitious for a one-day race.

Related: How are EDR Liaison Times Determined?

Though Leogang probably won't be hot like Finale, weather still could be an issue. Leogang’s weather forecast says that there will be a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon on both Thursday and Friday. Adverse weather could lead to delays on a day that already will be tight.

Currently, the UCI’s extreme weather protocol states the following:

When conditions at an event necessitate, a working group will be convened by the President of the Commissaires Panel at the request of the UCI, the teams, the riders or the organisers, to agree on an action plan to mitigate the risks to riders’ health and safety.

The risks of lightning on exposed mountainsides are genuine, so this course could well be amended or delayed if weather becomes a risk.

Videos coming out of Leogang look very wet, which will make for a grueling, but exciting day of racing.

Isabeau Courdurier is coming off a win in Poland but It will be hard to bet against Harriet Harnden, who is no stranger to riding in sloppy conditions at home in the UK.

On the men’s side, both Richie Rude and Charlie Murray have taken wins this year. However, this could be the week that Slawomir Lukasik finally breaks through. Lukasik has had bad luck this year. Lukasik had an unfortunate flat while leading on the final stage in Finale and then tragically lost by under a hundredth of a second in his home country of Poland.

Stay tuned on BIKE's homepage for more coverage of this weekend's race action.

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