MOUNTAIN BIKE DOWNHILL

Heart rates go up as bikes fly down mountainsides in these white-knuckle descents

Riders take on jumps, bumps, berms and rock gardens against the clock at white-knuckle speeds of up to 80km/h. The most fearless will bomb their runs. Others will bail. Only the fastest will win the rainbow jersey.

Riders need to be strong, fit and fearless just to make it through the qualifying rounds. For the finals, the drama keeps rising as they make their way down in reverse order of qualifying speed, where fractions of a second determine their fates.

You definitely don’t want to miss the finish, where a huge crowd waits to welcome each and every rider who masters the mountain.

RIDER TO WATCH Greg Minnaar (RSA)

Downhill mountain biking’s most decorated rider suffered a serious crash at the 2022 UCI World Cup in Val di Sole, Italy, leaving him with three fractured vertebrae. After months in recovery, he’s back in the saddle and ready to ride.

Instagram @gregminnaar

When

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Start It Up

The first ever Downhill race took place in California in 1976. Since then, the sport has boomed in popularity as one of the most thrilling bike events there is.

WILD & FREE

Back in the 1970s, mountain bike races were all freewheeling down mountain dirt roads.

The Bike

Downhill bikes are basically motocross bikes without engines. Heavier than other mountain bikes, with bigger wheels and full suspension to deal with gnarly terrain, riders have to be super strong to control them.