The UCI has shaken up the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon series for 2011. Introducing 15 event taking place in eight countries across three continents, the series is open to elite and amateurs alike who can both stand to qualify for the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships.

In establishing the 15 event series, the International Cycling Union is attempting to spread the appeal of marathon mountain bike racing to a global audience. The series will head to Austria, Costa Rica, Croatia, France, Italy, Latvia, South Africa and Switzerland.

The Series events extend from the 2011 UCI Marathon Mountain Bike World Championships in Montebelluna (ITA) to the subsequent World Championships in Ornans in France.

Elite riders can qualify for the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships by placing in the top 20 of a UCI Mountain Bike Marathon Series event (or in the top 50 of the general classification of the Series) in addition to selection by their National Federation. All riders are obliged to wear national team clothing when competing in the World Championships.

Marathon series open to amateurs

The UCI Mountain Bike Marathon Series is also open to all amateur riders who can test themselves against the best athletes in the world. They can also qualify for the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships through one or more events of the Series under the same criteria as Elite riders.

The first four events of the series have already been held in Austria, Switzerland, Italy and France. Round five at the Roc d’Azur last weekend brings down the curtain on the 2011 rounds of the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon Series, with the 2012 opener and sixth race of the Series to be held in February in the far south of the African continent in Mpumalanga province in South Africa.

The Marathon Series calendar

July 2-3 (2011): KitzAlpbike XCM – Kirchberg, Austria
August 20 (2011): Grand Raid – Verbier-Nendaz-Hérémence-Evolène-Grimentz
September 19 (2011): Adamello Bike – Ponte di Legno (BS), Italy
October 1-2 (2011): Extrême Sur Loue – Ornans, France
October 5-9 (2011): Roc d’Azur – Frejus, France
February 25: Sabie Classic – Sabie – Mpumalanga, South Africa
April 8: Roc Laissagais – Laissac, France
June 10: Elsabiketrophy – Estavayer-le-Lac, Switzerland
June 17: Endurance Atenas – Atenas, Costa Rica
July 7-8: Südtirol Dolomiti Superbike – Villabassa, South Tyrol, Italy
July 29: MTB Ucka Marathon – Lovran, Croatia
August 19: Grazer Bike-Marathon Stattegg – Stattegg, Austria
August 26: MTB Jurmala Marathon – Jurmala, Latvia
September 8-9: Val di Fassa Bike – Moena – Val di Fassa, Italy
September 9: O-Tour Bike Obwalden – Obwalden, Switzerland
September 15-16: La Forestière – Lamoura – Arbent, France

View the events in detail here www.uci.ch/templates/BUILTIN-NOFRAMES/Template3/layout.asp?MenuId=MTUyMzA&LangId=1