MTB
Here's all you need to know about the Australian leg of the popular mountain bike festival series that takes place from May 22–26.
The Crankworx World Tour moves to the second of four stops in 2024 in Cairns, Australia. As the the relative new kid on the block of the Crankworx festival series, there's plenty that's fresh to enjoy in Cairns, with the slopestyle contest as always being the headline-grabber.
01
What's the Crankworx Cairns Red Bull TV schedule?
Crankworx Cairns takes place from May 22–26 and five events from the festival are being broadcast live on Red Bull TV:
- Thursday, May 23: Specialized Dual Slalom Cairns - live on Red Bull TV at 6am UTC
- Friday, May 24: RockShox Downhill Cairns – live on Red Bull TV at 4.30am UTC
- Saturday, May 25: Crankworx Cairns Speed & Style – live on Red Bull TV at 3am UTC
- Saturday, May 25: Crankworx Cairns Pump Track Challenge – live on Red Bull TV at 8.30am UTC
- Sunday, May 26: Crankworx Cairns Slopestyle – live on Red Bull TV at 12.30am UTC
02
Tell us more about where Crankworx Cairns takes place
Crankworx Cairns happens at Smithfield Mountain Bike Park, which is set in the confines of a World Heritage tropical rainforest. The Smithfield Mountain Bike Park, which is around a 20-minute drive north of Cairns Airport, boasts an impressive trail riding network of more than 60km that's hard to beat given its rainforest surroundings.
Smithfield is also on the Queensland coast of Australia, with the Great Barrier reef nearby, so who wouldn't want to come to compete here or make a trip to spectate?
Smithfield has its own place in the history of mountain biking, having been the location for two UCI Mountain Bike World Championships and two World Cups in the past. The UCI World Cup-standard downhill track and parts of the courses that have been used in World Cup cross-country races can be ridden by those visiting the bike park.
Watch below for the winning runs from the 2023 Crankworx Downhill event on that track.
In response to challenges posed following tropical cyclone Jasper in December 2023, the Cairns team have had to repair damage across the bike park. As a result, the team have had an opportunity to reimagine certain areas, including the Slopestyle course and Whip-Off section.
03
Who to look out for in Cairns
After withdrawing from the slopestyle competition in Rotorua, the good news is that the male competitors will be back battling for honours in Cairns. Seasoned slopestylers Emil Johansson, Erik Fedko, Dawid Godziek, Nicholi Rogatkin, Timothé Bringer and Britain's Tom Isted will be among the 14 starters.
Following the historic first women's slopestyle contest at Rotorua, we'll again see six women take part in the Cairns contest. Caroline Buchanan, Robin Goomes and Harriet Burbidge-Smith, who were on the podium spots in New Zealand, will be fighting again for glory alongside Patricia Druwen, Alma Wiggberg and Shealen Reno. Buchanan and Burbidge-Smith will be looking to impress on home turf and are also competing in the Speed & Style event.
Jayce Cunning is one of the stand-out Aussie men to look out in Cairns. He'll be competing in the Specialized Dual Slalom. Another Australian to note is Ryan Gilchrist, who is currently ranked second in the 2024 King of Crankworx standings and was last year’s Dual Slalom victor at Cairns. He'll be taking part in Pump Track Challenge and Speed & Style. Downhiller Mick Hannah, who won the 2023 RockShox Downhill at Crankworx Cairns, will be defending his downhill title at the ripe old age of 40.
04
The latest in the race to be King and Queen of Crankworx
With the first stop of the 2024 Crankworx Festivals complete after Rotorua, the battle for the King and Queen of Crankworx overall competition is beginning to take shape.
Currently, New Zealand’s Tuhoto-Ariki Pene and British athlete Martha Gill top the 2024 men's and women's standings respectively after impressive showings in Rotorua. Tuhoto-Ariki leads the King race with 302 points, with Australian Ryan Gilchrist in second on 269 and Canada’s Jakob Jewett in third with 240. Gill leads the Queen race with 345 points, but is just five points ahead of New Zealander Shania Rawson, while American Kialani Hines is in third on 240.
05
What happened at Crankworx Cairns 2023?
Emil Johansson claimed yet another slopestyle win at a Crankworx Festival to take his tally at that time to 11 titles.
Australians came to the fore in terms of competition wins in the women's events. Harriet Burbidge-Smith picked up two wins – her first gold at Cairns came in the women's Speed & Style contest and her second gold followed a day later in the Dual Slalom. Caroline Buchanan took victory in the Pump Track event.
The men's winners in those competitions were American Garret Mechem in the Speed & Style, Ryan Gilchrist in the Dual Slalom and Jayce Cunning in the Pump Track. The downhill races saw wins for Mick Hannah in the men's and New Zealander Jenna Hastings in the women's.
