The Mountain Bike World Championship was first held in 1990 in Durango, Colorado. Forty years later, in 2030, MTB World Champs (“Worlds”) will return to its birthplace.
“We’re off to the races,” said Gaige Sippy, co-leader behind Durango’s world championship bid. “It’s going to be amazing to see world-class mountain biking at the highest level in our town again, and I can’t wait to see how that inspires future generations.”
Worlds “will take place August 26 – September 1, 2030, and feature five days of competition, welcoming more than 800 riders from 55 nations,” according to a press release published by the City of Durango.
Ned Overend won the inaugural 1990 MTB World Champs men’s XC race, and he still lives in Durango today. Julie Furtado was a long-time Durango resident, and she won the women’s event that year. Another Durango resident, Greg Herbold, won the men’s downhill event. This racing legacy has permeated the town’s DNA, and since then Durango has produced numerous world champions.
Most notably, 2023 Vuelta a España winner Sepp Kuss — who is the first American to win a Grand Tour race since 2013 — was raised in Durango and honed his skills during his time in the Devo youth development program. Olympians Todd Wells, Riley Amos, and Savilia Blunk hail from Durango, and young phenom Asa Vermette is shaking up the DH World Cup circuit in the juniors category and winning events like Red Bull Hardline Wales. In addition, Fort Lewis College’s collegiate cycling team, based in Durango, boasts multiple national titles as one of the winningest college teams in the USA. Durango is also home to numerous national MTB and cycling champions of all ages.
What MTB infrastructure development is planned for Purgatory Resort?
The 1990 World Champs were held at Purgatory Resort, and the 2030 Worlds will return to Durango’s local ski resort. In addition to hosting worlds, Purgatory will also host “a major international mountain bike race in 2028 and a UCI World Cup race in 2029,” according to a press release. No information has been released about the 2028 event as of press time.
While Durango is currently investing in building a facility capable of hosting world-class events at Durango Mesa Park, the press release notes that all events will be held at Purgatory Resort, including “Downhill, Cross Country Olympic, Short Track, and Ebike.”
However, Purgatory Resort currently does not offer the infrastructure to support such events. The downhill bike park is a far cry from the best in Colorado, although it only takes one race track to host a World Cup. While stretches of the original XC Worlds course can still be found on the mountain, the trail is overgrown, little-ridden, and now no longer even provides a complete MTB ride. One of the exits of the XC trail was recently destroyed by a new condo development.
In fact, Purgatory chose not to open its bike park in 2025 due to a planned lift construction, and the resort has made very little progress on the build, according to a report in the Durango Herald.
We reached out to Purgatory to learn about the planned infrastructure development for hosting such top-tier events.
“It is still early in the planning process, so specific decisions about course alignments, contractors, and investments will be made by the UCI and the local organizing committee (LOC) in the months ahead,” said Purgatory in a statement to Singletracks. “What we can say with confidence is that Purgatory offers an incredible natural setting for world-class racing. As Ned Overend, who won the first UCI World Championships here in 1990, said in a recent interview: ‘The terrain in Durango and at Purgatory is some of the most challenging and diverse in the world. It’s where mountain biking history was made, and it’s the perfect stage for the future of the sport.’
“Our role is to support the UCI and the LOC in delivering a championship that both honors Durango’s legacy and showcases its unique terrain to a global audience,” they concluded.
MTB Worlds fame coming soon to Durango, Colorado
The bid to host MTB Worlds was spearheaded by a local organizing committee consisting of USA Cycling, Purgatory Resort, Durango Trails, Durango Devo, Fort Lewis College, the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, and others. The local coalition hopes that hosting three world-class events, culminating with MTB Worlds, will catapult Durango back into the international mountain biking spotlight.
“Bringing the world championship back would reestablish and enhance that Durango is a premier cycling community, not only in the United States, but across the world,” said Sippy.
“Mountain biking and cycling are woven into Durango’s DNA; from our pioneering spirit to the incredible trail infrastructure and our renowned junior-development programming, Durango is a true heartland of cycling,” said Durango Native Todd Wells, co-leader of the events and three-time Olympian mountain biker. “The 2030 World Championships will enable us to showcase our community on a global stage once again.”
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