The 2021 World Cup series is set to commence with round 1 and 2 at Verona Italy Saturday 8 May and Sunday 9 May. After looking at what to expect it appears we have a few changes as competitors and spectators. Firstly bmxlive.tv, who have covered the World Cup and World Championship events for many years, is “no longer an operating company” according to their website. On top of that bmx-results.com who keep results, entry lists and rider stats “will not be maintained for the time being”. And then there’s the new under 23 category that’s on trial for 2021.

Let’s get back to bmxlive.tv and bmx-results.com, it appears that the UCI are pulling live streaming and results in-house so they can be a one stop shop.

There is potential that we won’t see the live stream we are used to as it’s unclear what the UCI’s broadcasting agreements are in the Olympic year. Hopefully this becomes clearer in the coming weeks.

There doesn’t appear to be any clear links for the World Cup over at www.uci.org/bmx-racing/ but if you are looking for information that should be your first stop, perhaps closer to the event. There is also www.teambmxverona.it that does have some more information.

Under 23, the new category in the 2021 World Cup program

From 2021, the UCI is excited to announce the introduction of a new category to the UCI BMX Supercross series, the Under 23 category, offered for both Men and Women.

The UCI, in consultation with the BMX Commission has introduced the Under 23 category on a trial basis for 2021 with a view to fully integrate the categories from 2022 to the series.

The new category provides an opportunity for riders to join the series and enjoy an introduction to the UCI BMX Supercross World Cup series, without immediately racing against the Elite riders of the sport. The racing format for the category will be the same as the Elite categories, with riders starting with the First Round, Last Chance qualifier, then moving into the qualifiers and the final. By offering the category, there will be more opportunity for the riders to reach the final, more opportunities for podium positions and more opportunities to win prize money.

For the 2021 series, riders can elect to enter either the Elite or Under 23 category, it is not mandatory to enter the Under 23 category and riders may choose to register for either category at each leg of the series. There is no requirement to remain in the Under 23 or the Elite category for the whole season.

World Cup standings will be calculated for the Under 23 category, however no UCI Ranking points will be available for the 2021 series.

UCI BMX WORLD CUP STANDINGS

A further development for 2021 is that the UCI BMX Supercross World Cup standing will be published for the first /me on the UCI Website. This will allow all riders and teams to view their standings in one place.