Thrilling battles await cyclo-cross stars and fans with the first of 12 rounds of the 2025-2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup taking place this weekend in Tábor (Czechia). Well established specialists of the discipline, versatile multi-discipline athletes and rising talents gear up to tackle a packed schedule of races, all the way to the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Hulst (the Netherlands), at the beginning of 2026 (30 January to 1 February).
From Tábor to Hoogerheide
The 2025-2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup action will come thick and fast, with rounds occurring at least weekly, except for the weekend of the National Championships on 10-11 January. Home to the first round, Tábor returns to the calendar after having hosted the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in 2024. Flamanville (France) and Koksijde (Belgium) are also back in the schedule, while Terralba Sardegna (Italy) will welcome a round for the first time after last year’s Sardinian event was cancelled due to adverse weather conditions.
The end of 2025 promises to be particularly intense with four rounds scheduled in ten days ahead of the final rush in January. The UCI World Cup season will finish with races on consecutive days in Maasmechelen (Belgium) and Hoogerheide (the Netherlands) at the end of January.
Younger riders (Men Junior, Women Junior and Men Under 23) will have dedicated races at the rounds in Tábor, Flamanville, Koksijde, Dendermonde (Belgium), Benidorm (Spain) and Hoogerheide.
The 2025-2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup calendar:
Round 1: Sunday 23 November 2025, in Tábor (Czechia)
Round 2: Sunday 30 November 2025, in Flamanville (France)
Round 3: Sunday 7 December 2025, in Terralba Sardegna (Italy)
Round 4: Sunday 14 December 2025, in Namur (Belgium)
Round 5: Saturday 20 December 2025, in Antwerpen (Belgium)
Round 6: Sunday 21 December 2025, in Koksijde (Belgium)
Round 7: Friday 26 December 2025, in Gavere (Belgium)
Round 8: Sunday 28 December 2025, in Dendermonde (Belgium)
Round 9: Sunday 4 January 2026, in Zonhoven (Belgium)
Round 10: Sunday 18 January 2026, in Benidorm (Spain)
Round 11: Saturday 24 January 2026, in Maasmechelen (Belgium)
Round 12: Sunday 25 January 2026, in Hoogerheide (the Netherlands).
Women: Challenging the Dutch
The 2024-2025 Women Elite UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup saw a seventh consecutive Dutch triumph as Lucinda Brand (Baloise Glowi Lions) succeeded Ceylin Alvarado (Fenix - Deceuninck) to reclaim the overall title she had previously won in 2020-2021 and 2021-2022. A supremely seasoned and decorated expert, Brand has begun the 2025-2026 season in spectacular fashion, but she saw the European title escape her at the UEC European Cyclo-cross Championships that were held in early November in Middelkerke, Belgium.
Brand took silver as she was outpaced by her younger Dutch compatriot Inge van der Heijden (Fenix-Deceuninck): the former Under 23 UCI World Champion (in 2019) is gradually climbing the Elite ranks and finished 5th in the overall standings in last year’s UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup. The competition promises to be intense, with contenders also featuring the likes of Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) and Fem van Empel (Team Visma | Lease a Bike), who is making a notable return after a break from racing. Watch out too, for Italy’s Sara Casasola (Crelan-Corendon) who’s had a strong start to the season, including fourth at the European Championships.
At the season opener in Tábor, there will also be focus on local sensation Barbora Bukovská, winner of the Women Junior race at the final round of the 2024-2025 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup, who recently ruled the same category at the UEC European Championships. The Czech only turned 17 years old at the beginning of November, but in the next few years she’s touted to join the likes of Great Britain’s Zoe Bäckstedt (Canyon//SRAM Zondacrypto), Hungary’s Blanka Vas (Team SD Worx-Protime) and Luxembourg’s Marie Schreiber (Team SD Worx-Protime) on the international field challenging the Dutch icons.
Men: history waiting to be written
The men’s competitions also promise to be exhilarating, with seasoned experts and rising stars trying to maintain – or overcome – Belgian domination. Last year’s success for Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Altez Industriebouw) was the seventh in a row for the nation, which has dominated proceedings since Mathieu Van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) took the overall win for the Netherlands in 2017-2018. The Dutchman is gearing up for more UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup masterclasses and a potentially historic eighth Men Elite UCI World Championships title on home soil, while Belgian stars are already lighting up the early season action, despite the absence of still-injured Eli Iserbyt.
At the recent UEC European Championships, Vanthourenhout had to settle for 10th while his countrymen Toon Aerts (Deschacht - Hens CX Team), Thibau Nys (Baloise Glowi Lions) and Joran Wyseure (Alpecin-Deceuninck) swept the podium spots. Aerts and Wyseure rounded out last season’s overall UCI World Cup podium alongside Vanthourenhout. As for Nys, he won round 10 in Benidorm and took the bronze medal at the UCI Worlds, making two significant steps in his Elite career after claiming countless successes and accolades in the youth categories, including Under 23 triumphs at the UCI World Championships and the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup.
Another challenger to look out for is British Champion Cameron Mason (Seven Racing) fifth at the 2025 UEC European Championships behind the three Belgians and Dutchman Pim Ronhaar.
Young riders making themselves known include the Netherlands’ Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck, who took back-to-back UCI world titles in the Under 23 ranks (2024 and 2025) and now looks more than ready to take the next step among the Elite. Meanwhile, Italy’s Mattia Agostinacchio (EF Education-EasyPost-Oatly), who dominated last year’s Men Junior field, has just won the Under 23 title at the UEC European Championships. A thrilling 2025-2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup awaits!