UCI Gravel World Championships 2023

The creation of the UCI Gravel World Championships in 2022 added a 10th discipline to the international federation's events. Gravel joined road, mountain bike, track, cyclo-cross, BMX, BMX freestyle, trials, indoor cycling, and e-sport on the list of sanctioned disciplines.

The UCI, along with organisation by Filippo Pozzato’s PP Sport Events, launched the inaugural UCI Gravel World Championships in 2022 in the Veneto region of Italy. Qualifying for riders took place throughout the year based on individual performances in the Trek UCI Gravel World Series, and other riders were selected by their national federations.  

In 2023 new organisers, Pedali di Marca, were announced just weeks before the scheduled dates in early October. New routes were disclosed soon after, a start. from Lago Le Bandie and finish in Pieve di Soligo. Fresh courses provided significantly more climbing for the 169km elite men’s route, 1,900 metres of elevation gain, as well as for a 140km elite women's track, 1,660 metres of elevation gain.

Last year, Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (France) and Gianni Vermeersch (Belgium) claimed the first elite titles in the UCI Gravel World Championships. Ferrand-Prevot outsprinted fellow mountain biker Sina Frei (Switzerland) for the title, while Italian Chiara Teocchi followed 11 seconds later for the bronze.

Vermeersch soloed to the men's victory, 43 seconds ahead of Daniel Oss (Italy). Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands), a trade teammate with Vermeersch on Alpecin-Fenix, then out-kicked Greg Van Avermaet (Belgium) and a small group of WorldTour and ProTour riders to round out the podium. 

Like the first season, the Trek UCI Gravel World Series returned for automatic berths for the World Championships for the top 25% in each age group. There were 16 global events for the 2023 UCI Gravel World Series -12 events in Europe joining two in North America, one in South Africa, and one in Australia on the calendar. 

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UCI Gravel World Championships 2023 route

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The second edition of the UCI Gravel World Championships will again hold separate races for elite men and elite women, with the elite women competing Saturday morning across a 140km course and the elite men taking off Sunday on a similar 169km track with one extra climb. Both routes depart from Lago Le Bandie and including circuits that cross the finish line in Pieve di Soligo three times, the final pass to award rainbow jerseys.

A combination of surfaces feature nine key climbs for the elite men with 1,900 metres of elevation gain. Though 25 kilometres shorter than the inaugural edition of the men’s race, the course on Sunday has more than doubled the numbers for climbing this time out. 

The distance remains the same for elite women in 2023, but also with more climbing. The women face eight key climbs adding to 1,660 metres of elevation gain. The mix of white gravel roads and unpaved surfaces is expected to comprise close to 50% of both routes. 

UCI Gravel World Championships 2023 race schedule