Mountain bike in its "marathon" format is capable of welcoming the strongest international athletes in the discipline while simultaneously allowing thousands of amateur bikers to compete on the same track and in the same event as the elite of the movement.

The organizers of HERO Südtirol Dolomites know this well. With 15 years of experience in creating the world's toughest and most spectacular mountain bike marathon, they become the coordinators and promoters of the newly formed HERO UCI MARATHON WORLD CUP, the official name of the circuit that the International Cycling Union (UCI) wanted to create in a calendar of five high-profile races.

UNTIL 2028

An agreement that stems from a long and fruitful relationship between HERO and UCI, dating back to when the Dolomites race hosted the UCI Marathon World Championship in 2015, and which now lays the groundwork for a broad international initiative. The goal is to contribute to the growth of competitive cycling, in a project that will see UCI and HERO working together for the next four years.

The calendar will involve five of the most appreciated European mountain bike marathons that will be united for the first time in the same circuit under the UCI banner.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

From Italy through Andorra, Germany, and Spain, five stages and thousands of bikers at the start. Here is the HERO UCI MARATHON WORLD CUP calendar in its first 2025 version:

10/05/25: ITA - Capoliveri Legend Cup, Capoliveri-Isola d'Elba

01/06/25: AND - Naturland, Andorra

14/06/25: ITA - HERO Südtirol Dolomites, Selva Val Gardena

13/07/25: GER - Black Forest ULTRA Bike Marathon, Kirchzarten

21/09/25: SPA - La Tramun Sea Otter Europe, Girona

UCI President David Lappartient stated: "The HERO UCI CROSS-COUNTRY MARATHON WORLD CUP is a new series for specialists of this mountain bike format, and we are pleased to announce the 2025 calendar. By bringing together some of the world's most famous mountain bike marathon races, this series has all the ingredients for epic battles, not only at each stage but also for the overall victory."

In the HERO UCI MARATHON WORLD CUP name, HERO stands out as the organizers from Selva Val Gardena will handle coordination activities for the events in the calendar, professional teams, management of regulations and related rankings, as well as responsibility for marketing and communication to both media and social channels.

"We are very satisfied to announce the 2025 agenda of the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Cup, a race circuit that will animate the competitive summer of thousands of bikers," comments Gerhard Vanzi, CEO and Founder of HERO Südtirol Dolomites. "On this occasion, we want to thank the UCI for the trust they have once again placed in us and all the organizations that believed in the project of a high-profile UCI World Cup."

Athletes who can compete for the final UCI World Cup ranking are naturally those racing in the Male and Female Elite categories, but the big novelty of the 2025 edition is the expansion to rankings reserved for male and female bikers in the Master License category, provided they are registered with their national federation affiliated with the UCI.

Participants must regularize their participation with each individual race in the calendar, and participation will automatically contribute to the general ranking. It will be the responsibility of the HERO UCI MARATHON WORLD CUP organization to update the rankings after each stage, which can be consulted on the website www.heroucimarathonworldcup.com. Registrations are open from February 4, 2025.

For information: heroucimarathonworldcup.com