Takeaways from the UCI XC Teams List
From Alpecin to Wilier, the World Cup team rosters are now official
World Cup XC rosters are now official with the release of the finalized UCI teams list. I’ve reported on silly season rumors and news as it has come out, but it was a lot to keep up with this year. For my final installment of transfer news (for XC, more on DH is coming soon), let’s dig into some interesting bits from the teams that I haven’t written about yet.
It’s yet to be seen which teams will be official UCI MTB World Series teams—the limited top class of teams that have automatic entry to the World Cup and greater exposure by Warner Bros. That announcement is expected soon.
Kelsey Urban heads to KMC
With the closure of the Team 31 Ibis Team, riders such as Kelsey Urban and Jenny Rissveds had to change teams. For Urban, that meant signing with the KMC Ridley MTB Racing Team run by 1996 Olympic MTB Champion Bart Brentjens.
Urban is the American National Champion. She had some health issues in recent years, but I’m excited to see what season she can string together this year.
Jenny Rissveds rides to Canyon CLLCTV
Urban’s former teammate Rissveds on the other hand will ride a Canyon bike this year. A bronze at the Olympics last summer proves she can still battle with the best of them. The Swede joins the likes of Luca Schwarzbauer and Thomas Griot on the CLLCTV.
Loana Lecomte to BMC Factory Racing
As was rumored, French racer Loana Lecomte now rides for the French team of BMC. The team is a small squad, with Lecomte joining existing riders Jordan Sarrou and Titouan Carrod. Capping off the 2024 season with a win in Mont-Sainte-Anne, Lecomte is sure to impress in 2025.
Decathlon adds David List
Decathlon-Ford didn’t see too many roster changes this year, but the French team did add David List. List is a 25-year-old from Germany and his best result last year was an 8th place in Lake Placid. He joins the likes of Joshua Dubau and Savilia Blunk at Decathlon.
Yana Belomoina joins Massi
The Spanish Massi team has nine riders this season, with the most high profile being Yana Belomoina of Ukraine. The Ukrainian National Champion raced for KMC Ridley previously, and was forced to sit out of the last two World Cups after injuring her leg late in the season.
Anne Tauber signs with KTM
In a win for another three-letter-acronym-team, the Dutch Anne Tauber has moved over to the KTM Factory team. Her top result last year was a 7th at the Mairipora round in Brazil.
Lapierre adds Anton Cooper and Chiara Teocchi
After leaving Trek Factory Racing, Anton Cooper has joined Lapierre Racing Unity. The team will also see Italian Chiarra Teocchi racing in their jersey, a rider who placed 4th in Mairipora and 11th at the Olympic Games this past year.
Mondraker Factory Racing to support Mona Mitterwallner
Mona Mitterwallner announced that she will be racing on the road for Human Powered Health this season, but in the dirt she will be supported by Mondraker. The team also secured Nadir Colledani, who was previously on the now-folded Santa Cruz-RockShox.
Shake up at Orbea Fox Factory Team
The only rider that’s not new at Orbea this year is Pierre de Froidmont. The Belgian will welcome three new teammates to make up the four rider squad: Simon Andreassen, Rebecca Henderson, and Jennifer Jackson.
The Danish Andreassen won in a tactical masterclass in Araxa, Brazil last season and will be looking to back that up with more consistency this year. Henderson is also a regular threat to the podium and top-10, with a 2nd in Brazil being her best in 2024. Canadian Jackson will also be looking to spend more time on the podium after showing top potential last year.
French-fueled Origine Racing Division
After retiring at the end of last season, Maxime Marotte is now team manager for the new Origine Racing program. The four rider squad is being led by promising names: the French Mathis Azzaro and Italian Martina Berta. Origine has also signed talents Ronja Eibl and Knut Rohme.
Trinity Racing lives on
Trinity folded its road cycling team last year but is keeping an MTB presence with a team of young riders. Junior and U23 Champion Line Burquier joins the team, as do Americans Henry Coote, Dan English, and Vida Lopez de San Roman—Lopez de San Roman is the recent Elite Cyclocross National Champion and Coote is the U23 Champion. The squad is rounded out by Scottish Corran Carrick-Anderson.
Luca Braidot to Wilier-Vittoria
Another former Santa Cruz-Rockshox rider, Luca Braidot has joined the Wilier-Vittoria Factory Team. A source told me that Wilier has added additional funding to the team since they no longer sponsor Astana. We’ll see what the team pulls off in the coming years.
Adrian Boichis on Specialized
Specialized Factory Racing will largely be the same in 2025. One interesting name on the roster, however, is Adrian Boichis. He was already in the Specialized family racing for Trinity previously, but he is now riding on the road for Specialized backed Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. Presumably he will also race some MTB supported by Specialized Factory Racing.