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Being the 11th Junior Woman has got to be rough. That will suck for whoever it is.
A few years ago exactly the same situation occurred, at that time they did let all 11 race the finals I remember. Maybe they will again (it is rough flying all that way to be the only one not racing finals, at the same time, rules be rules and they are the same for everyone...).
Vital Fantasy is live - https://www.vitalmtb.com/fantasy/2026/round-1-south-korea
wyntv track walk and some vlogs from the racers
Luke Meier-Smith
Bernard
Janaynay
Was there a reason given why mechanics (I assume based on pit bits video) can’t do track walk anymore?
Track walks were becoming traffic jams.
According to Chris K. on Downtime, they were too crowded with traffic jams and such and people standing in the way of being able to see the lines. He said the managers would often sort of have a gentleman's agreement from weekend to weekend of who all could come, but he said like girlfriends, family, etc.. and such would come on the trackwalks at times. So UCI basically just made a formal rule of who all was allowed.
Orbea FMD throwing their hat in the ring for the battle of the best looking bike in South Korea:
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These are the Orbea FMD Racing – The Gravity Cooperative Rallons to Kick Off the Season
Tahnée Seagrave will race with a MyOrbea Custom design in her signature colour, while the rest of the team will showcase a look based on new finishes developed by Orbea.
Orbea FMD Racing – The Gravity Cooperative begins the 2026 season true to its identity: competing at the highest level and standing out beyond the race track. For this first phase of the calendar, the team unveils its new Rallon bikes in a proposal that combines elite performance with personalization open to the entire community. The team will compete with the same look, with Tahnée as the exception, showcasing a differentiated version in pink tones that brings a unique touch within a coherent and recognizable visual identity.
The main design is built on a Noctiluca Carbon View base with a glossy finish, combined with Titanium Purple details, creating a clean, technical aesthetic aligned with the team’s racing DNA. Tahnée’s bike, meanwhile, features Cotton Pink as the dominant colour, paired with Metallic Navy Blue accents, maintaining a balance between personality and performance.
All these finishes are part of Orbea’s MyO Custom program, allowing any rider to access exactly the same colours and configurations used by the team in competition. A decision that reinforces one of the project’s core pillars: bringing top-level performance closer to the public and making them part of the experience.
Maximum Ambition
Orbea FMD Racing – The Gravity Cooperative heads into 2026 with renewed ambition after a 2025 season that marked a turning point for the project and made waves across the industry. It was a year of learning, evolution, and first major results that confirmed the team’s potential both on and off the track. With a roster that combines experience, talent, and future potential, the team continues with a group that has already proven its ability to compete at the highest level. Tahnée Seagrave, Martin Maes, Phoebe Gale, Oliver Zwar, Darragh Ryan and Kaos Seagrave. Riders and staff approach this new season with a clear objective: aiming for the very top.
The work carried out over the past season, from bike development to building a strong team identity, lays the foundation for a 2026 where ambition continues to grow. It’s not just about repeating results, but surpassing them, pushing boundaries further, and establishing itself as one of the benchmark projects in the international DH scene.
South Korea photo PIT BITS here (Giant on ABS???) - https://www.vitalmtb.com/forums/hub/pit-bits-world-cup-1-south-korea
Best case scenario is a DNS for qualies
It was only a problem at Worlds
There is a 1hr delay to the start of DHI training with a revised schedule.
*New training schedule*
9:30 - 11:30 Women Elite & Juniors
11:30 - 13:30 Men Elite
13:30 - 15:00 Women Elite & Juniors (timed session)
15:00 - 16:30 Men Elite (timed session)
Amazing
Wyn TV
That's for Thursday in Korea?
Does that mean training is already underway?
(Sorry, this time zone / date line stuff is confusing me like crazy!)
yep, training happening now.
Great, thank you!
If I'm converting the times correctly, it looks like timed training starts in a couple of hours.
So we have a hardtail with boxxer up front, a dude with only rear brake, really want to see those runs. Respect to both, specially to ride that track with only one brake you need something special.
The guy from Indonesia is crazy. One brake, holding one with one finger to brake on the other hand. I almost feel scared for the guy.
Question for those there already, what’s the temperature like?
Going to try travel lite and leave most stuff in Seoul so be good to leave all the big clothes out.
Cheers
I went up in shorts and tee only today. Froze my balls off for half the day!
I’ll throw in a beanie, cheers!
Timed Training Results South Korea DH World Cup
The tires hit the dirt for the first World Cup of the year today, on a fresh new track that is cutting in by the minute. The riders faced some serious puzzling to try and figure it out, but by the end of the day the times were already getting closer as the ruts took form and the speeds increased. The French are sitting pretty atop the leaderboards, no surprise there - you can't really say you weren't expecting at least one Alran to fire a couple of warning shots across the bow of the old guard already, can you? Speaking of fast kids, Sacha Brizin (son of Commencal's main media mogul Nico Brizin) celebrated his arrival in the junior ranks by laying down the fastest run of the day in that category (and only a handful of seconds behind the fastest elites already...they do know how to make racers out there in Andorra, don't they...). We're on!
2026 South Korea UCI DH World Cup Timed Training Results - Elite Men
2026 South Korea UCI DH World Cup Timed Training Results - Elite Women
2026 South Korea UCI DH World Cup Timed Training Results - Junior Men
2026 South Korea UCI DH World Cup Timed Training Results - Junior Women
Course preview with Jackson (IG embed only for now, waiting for it to pop up somewhere on YouTube). Crazy how Jackson can just talk us down a brand new track for his very first run like this!
Lou Ferguson is out , as per the other site comments on the track preview.. hope is something simple to heal quick.
Wyn out. Seems like someone pulled out in front of him. Rightfully frustrated.
Big step down double is shut for racing.
Cold in the morning and afternoon.
Track looks like its hard to ride fast I like it
The one we've all been waiting for, the first Vital RAW of the World Cup season is here, and it's a good one! Thanks to John Lawlor for the epic hustle getting this one to us so quickly. Healing vibes to Lou Fergusson who crashed on the big step down, and spare a thought for the wheel builders who have their work cut out for them after half the field cased it as well.
https://www.vitalmtb.com/videos/features/south-korea-vital-raw-world-cup-downhill.
Aletha would be P2 Elite women
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