2026 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships

The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), cycling’s governing body, sanctioned the first Cycling Esports World Championships in 2020. The first edition included some of the sport’s biggest names from across 22 countries. Star riders from the women’s field included Elinor Barker, Sarah Storey, Anna van der Breggen, and Annika Langvad, whilst the men’s field included stars such as Ed Clancy, Esteban Chaves, Rigoberto Uran, Lionel Sanders, and Luis Leon Sanchez.

Cycling Esports has significantly grown in all aspects since the first edition of the event, whether it is performance verification, reporting system, points system or esports protocols. The sport has come a long way for the good, in order to ensure a fair competition for all athletes.

Event Evolution

2020 Edition: The first edition was contested on a 50 km course, where Jason Osborne from Germany and Ashleigh Moolman Pasio from South Africa were crowned the first Esports World Champions, completing the testing course that involved a 5.5% climb to the finish, in 1h 05′ 15” and 1h 13′ 27” respectively. 

2022 Edition: Following the inaugural UCI Cycling Esports World Championships that were held in December 2020, it was decided to shift the event to the month of February, resulting in the postponement of the 2021 edition to 2022. This time, members of the cycling community received an opportunity to compete and win a spot with their National Federation via a series of qualifying events, followed by final competition. The men’s race was won by Jay Vine, and the women’s race was won by Loes Adegeest.

2023 Edition: The 2023 UCI Esports Cycling World Championships third edition was held in February, on a specifically designed Scotland-inspired course, mirroring the UCI Cycling World Championship festival, taking place later in the year in Scotland. Loes Adegeest successfully defended her 2022 crown by outsprinting her rivals, while the men’s race was won by Bjørn Andreassen.

2024 Edition: The 2024 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships concluded with Mary Kate McCarthy and Jason Osborne emerging as the Women’s and Men’s World Champions, respectively, showcasing their exceptional skills and strategic prowess across three challenging stages hosted live in Abu Dhabi. This event marked a historic moment as it was the first time the finals were held in person, further elevating the competitive atmosphere of the championships.

The live grand finale, in front of a live audience that included former UCI Road Race World Champion Peter Sagan and current World Champion Tadej Pogacar.

2025 Edition: MyWhoosh hosted the fifth edition of the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships, with the grand final held on 15 November at the Space 42 Arena in Abu Dhabi. This edition introduced a new points-based grading system, awarding points to the first riders across each segment line — a shift away from the time-based scoring used previously. Around 30 National Federations and 300 riders, split evenly between men and women, competed across three distinct stages: “Last Rider Standing,” an 8.2 km elimination climb pitting riders against a pursuing Chaser; “Punchers’ Playground,” a 12 km course built for repeated explosive efforts; and “Sprinter’s Paradise,” eight laps of a fast 1.5 km circuit. Cumulative points across all three stages decided the champions, with Jason Osborne and Mary Kate McCarthy crowned the 2025 Cycling Esports World Champions — both successfully defending the titles they won in 2024.

MyWhoosh and 2026 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships

Qualification Pathways

The 2026 qualification pathway follows the 2025 format, splitting places between National Federation selections and open, MyWhoosh-hosted events. 

Seventy per cent of Semi-Final places, roughly 100 riders per gender are allocated to National Federations through a UCI quota system, with each nation’s allocation determined by its riders’ results across the 2024 and 2025 Championships. Federations submit their selected riders to MyWhoosh by 31 August. 

The remaining thirty per cent, around 30 riders per gender come through the public pathway. Any eligible rider not selected by their National Federation can race one of two open qualifiers on the MyWhoosh SRC, held on 5 September and 12 September. The top 20 eligible riders from the first race and the top 10 from the second are added to National Federation teams as extra riders. Riders must register their intent to compete in advance via racecontrol@mywhoosh.com, and final admission is subject to eligibility approval from both the local National Federation and the UCI.

That brings a field of approximately 130 verified riders per gender to the Semi-Finals, where the top 16 in each category automatically qualify for the Final joined by up to three wildcards per gender making a Grand Final field of up to 20 riders per category.

Race Format

Both the Semi-Final and the Final are contested over the same two stages. Riders score points at designated checkpoints, and the totals from both stages combine to decide the classification. Crucially, the event is won on total Championship points not on finish-line position. 

Stage 2 begins on a fixed clock: 25 minutes after the official start of Stage 1. Because the start time is fixed, each rider’s recovery window depends on how quickly they complete Stage 1 putting a premium on pacing across the whole event. All timing at scoring lines is taken from the leading edge of the rider’s front wheel. In the Semi-Finals, the first 20 riders score at each checkpoint; in the Final, the first 10. 

Stage 1: Surge Checkpoints 

Stage 1 is a 7.6 km points race featuring five checkpoints that activate live during the race. Riders get 500 m of warning before each active checkpoint, then score according to their front-wheel position as they cross the line. 

The checkpoint sequence is never revealed in advance to bring an extra level of jeopardy. Every rider in the same race receives the same activations, but no one knows which checkpoint fires next. Move too early and you risk spending all your matches before the real scoring opportunity; sit too far back and you leave yourself too little room to fight into a points position. Across 98 m of climbing on a punchy, rolling profile, it’s a stage built on awareness, positioning and the ability to accelerate and recover relentlessly.  

Stage 2: Route Choice 

Stage 2 is a 20 km race over four 5 km laps, and it hands the tactics to the rider. On every lap, riders choose between two routes of equal distance: a flatter option worth fewer points, or a hillier option worth more. The options appear 400 m before the junction; if no choice is made, the flatter route is selected automatically. The extra climbing on the harder route pays out more, but it costs energy and can affect position when the two routes merge. 

After the routes rejoin, all riders contest a common sprint checkpoint each lap, and on the final lap the finish line doubles as the last sprint. With eight scoring checkpoints across the stage riders are constantly weighing when the high-value route is worth the effort and when the easier line offers a better chance to recover, hold position or set up the next sprint. It’s a stage that rewards pacing, judgement and the ability to claw back places after the merge. 

Scoring 

Points are awarded to the top 10 finishers at each checkpoint. Stage 1 checkpoints and Stage 2 flat-route checkpoints run on a standard 10-point scale. The hillier Stage 2 route offers more, with 15 points on offer for first place. The lap sprints score on the standard scale and the final sprint of the race carries double points, worth 20 to the winner. Any tie on total points is broken first by Stage 2 points, then by finishing position on Stage 2. 

The Live Final: Broadcast worldwide 

The 2026 Grand Final is a broadcast-first spectacle. Taking place on 12 December from an arena focused on rider performance. It’s a Championship that’s faster to follow, harder to game, and decided as much by tactics and nerve as by watts. 

Verification and Fair Play 

Every athlete must clear MyWhoosh’s independent verification process to reach the start line. That means a validated Power Passport Test, a verified weigh-in, approved equipment and dual power recording a primary smart trainer or smart bike alongside a separate crank- or pedal-based power meter, plus a Bluetooth chest-strap heart-rate monitor. The Final runs on ELITE’s verified hardware. 

Verification runs before, during and after every race: validated history and equipment checks beforehand; live power, cadence, heart-rate and identity monitoring during; and data comparison and abnormal-performance review afterwards. All results stay provisional until MyWhoosh completes performance verification and the UCI and appointed International Commissaire confirm the official classification. Harassment, cheating, data manipulation, equipment tampering or identity fraud can all lead to disqualification or suspension under UCI and MyWhoosh rules, with anti-doping governed by the UCI throughout.