Tom Pidcock won in Nové Město and then disappeared - as he tends to. Without Tom on the start line in Leogang, this weekend's XCO is wide open, and with a heavily reworked four-kilometre course promising the most demanding racing of the season so far, expect a very different kind of race to the technical woodland race we saw in the Czech Republic.
The Course
The Leogang circuit has been significantly redesigned for 2026, stretching to four kilometres with new sections grafted onto the existing layout at altitude in the Austrian Alps. The course mixes rocky technical climbing, fast descents and tight singletrack — terrain that will reward pure power as much as bike handling. It's a very different challenge to Nové Město, and that should shake up the standings considerably.
Men's Race - Who Steps Up?
With Pidcock absent, the door is open for the riders who have been consistent all season. Mathis Azzaro has been unstoppable in XCC this year, winning in both South Korea and Nové Město — the young Frenchman is riding with a confidence that is hard to ignore. The question is whether he can convert that short track explosiveness into XCO success on a longer, more power-dependent course.
Dario Lillo won the XCO opener in South Korea and has been a consistent presence at the front of every race so far. The Swiss rider suits the high-altitude Austrian terrain and arrives as one of the clear favourites. Filippo Colombo, Luca Schwarzbauer and Luca Martin — who pushed Pidcock hard in Nové Město — are all capable of winning here.
Charlie Aldridge will be flying the British flag with Pidcock absent, and the Cannondale rider has shown genuine top-10 pace all season.
Women's Race - Stigger at Home
Laura Stigger won the Nové Město XCO by 47 seconds after launching a decisive attack on lap three that the field simply couldn't close. Racing in Austria this weekend — effectively on home soil — with a packed crowd behind her, Stigger is the clear favourite. She returned from a year on the road looking sharper than ever and the momentum is firmly with her.
Jenny Rissveds and Sina Frei completed the Nové Město podium, with Rissveds arriving as World Champion and sitting near the top of the overall standings. Puck Pieterse was dominant in the XCC at Round 2 but faded in the XCO — she'll be looking to put together a complete weekend at Leogang.
Alessandra Keller and Jolanda Neff were both caught up in a crash during the Nové Město XCC and will want a clean, drama-free race. Both suit the Austrian course and are not to be underestimated.
Key Storylines
Azzaro's XCO test — Two XCC wins have made him the talk of the season, but XCO is a different challenge. Leogang will tell us whether he can back it up over a longer distance.
Stigger at home — An Austrian winning in Austria, in front of an Austrian crowd, would be a huge moment for the sport. She is in the form of her career.
Keller and Neff's response — Two of Switzerland's most decorated XCO riders were disrupted in Nové Město. They'll want to put that right this weekend.
Evie Richards — Richards crashed heavily at Nové Město and was taken to the hospital, though later confirmed nothing was broken. Her status for Leogang is uncertain — a big loss if she can't start, given how strong she looked before the fall.
Schedule (Local Time)
Friday 12 June
10:00 — XCC Women U23
11:25 — XCC Men U23
17:30 — XCC Women Elite
18:20 — XCC Men Elite
Sunday 14 June
08:30 — XCO Women U23
10:10 — XCO Men U23
11:55 — XCO Women Elite
13:50 — XCO Men Elite
Pick the Podium — XCOMTB Predictor
With Pidcock absent and the race wide open, this is the perfect round to test your knowledge. The XCOMTB Race Predictor is now live in the app for Leogang — pick your Elite Men and Elite Women podiums before the XCO starts on Sunday and see how you stack up against the rest of the community. Download the app, head to the Predictor tab, and lock in your picks!
App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/xcomtb/id6766799759
Full results and coverage on XCOMTB.COM.