Mont-Sainte-Anne is back on the UCI World Cup calendar!
Canadian fans will have to wait until 2022 for the iconic race to return, though
Photo by:
Matt Stetson
Canada’s iconic World Cup venue is making a comeback. After two years hiatus, Mont-Sainte-Anne is back on the 2022 World Cup calendar, which the UCI published today. It returns alongside several staple venues as well as the first World Cup XCO in Brazil.
Mont-Sainte Anne World Cup is back in 2022!
The Quebec venue last hosted an international event in 2019. That year, cross country and downhill world championships returned for a historic third time.
MSA was scheduled to host a World Cup round in 2020 but, like many venues, was forced to cancel due to the pandemic. 2020 marks the first time in 30 years that Mont-Sainte-Anne did not host an international event.
RELATED: What happened to 2021 Mont-Sainte-Anne World Cup?
Then, the Canadian round was absent from the 2021 calendar release. That, it turns out, was to ensure the long-term longevity of the venue.
In 2022, MSA will once again host a combined downhill and cross country World Cup. The lone Canadian round is scheduled for August 5-7. Snowshoe, W.Va is the only other North American stop for 2022. It will host cross country and downhill racing a week earlier, from July 29-31.
2022 World Cup Calendar – Brazil’s debut and Les Gets world champs
Mont-Sainte-Anne returning isn’t the only interesting part of the 2022 World Cup calendar. After an ambitiously early start to the downhill series in Lourdes, France in late March, there’s an entirely new venue.
Petropolis will host Brazil’s first-ever World Cup cross country race. With the Olympics visiting in 2016, it isn’t the South American countries first international mountain bike event. Instead of returning to Rio, the UCI is bringing World Cup racing to the hometown of Henrique Avancini. The Cannondale Factory Racing rider won Brazil’s first XCO World Cup, outsprinting Nino Schurter in Nove Mesto in October, 2020.
RELATED: UCI announces 2021 World Cup calendar
2022 world championships for both cross country and downhill go to the exciting venue at Les Gets, France. The last time Les Gets hosted a World Cup, the French town played host to thrilling cross country battles and a wildly high-speed downhill course. Cross country marathon world championships head to Haderslev, Denmark.
All in, there are eight downhill events and 10 cross country races on the World Cup schedule, plus world championships for 2022. It’ll be a big year after the minimal 2020 season and shortened 2021 calendar.
2022 World Cup schedule
