Laura
Stigger
Austria
·
MTB
Date of birth | September 25, 2000 |
|---|---|
Birthplace | Innsbruck |
Age | 25 |
Nationality | Austria |
Career start | 2007 |
Discipline | Mountainbike Cross Country |
The local boys that Laura Stigger first raced against provided a catalyst for the competitive spirit that's driven her to one success after another. She crashed hard in her first-ever race during the summer of 2007, but a bloody knee didn't stop her from finishing and starting her rapid climb through the cross-country ranks.
A dominant force at junior level
The Austrian excelled in the Junior World Series and by 2017 enjoyed her best season yet, winning everything she could: the Junior World Championships, the Junior European Championship (her fourth European title in four years), the Junior World Cup and every other race on her calendar.
This success wasn't enough for the ambitious Stigger, though, and she topped that in 2018 by retaining her Junior XCO World Championship crown in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, before switching disciplines to also win the Road Race World Championships in her home city, Innsbruck.
Despite still being eligible for the junior divisions, in 2019 Stigger stepped up to race the U23 Women's XCO World Cup series, where she made an immediate impression by winning the opening race in Albstadt, Germany. A further three third-place finishes and a runner-up in the series finale in Snowshoe, USA, ensured she finished second overall in the World Cup series, which she backed up with a silver medal at the UCI MTB World Championships in Canada.
Chasing victories against the world's best
Despite having a few years of U23 eligibility ahead of her, Stigger decided to step up in 2020 and race against the best in the full Elite Women's class. She immediately showed her decision was the right one after finishing on the podium in the first UCI World Cup of the season in Nové Město, a feat she repeated during the 2021 season at her home World Cup race in Leogang, Austria.
Another podium came on home soil at Leogang a year later during the 2022 season, and in 2023 Stigger showed great consistency, placing fourth in the overall World Cup standings. She then won the Austrian National Mountain Bike Championships in 2024 (XCO) and in 2025 (XCO and XCC).
With so many years of World Cup racing ahead of her to get even stronger, the world's best cross-country racers have been put on notice that Laura Stigger is here to stay.
A smile at the finish line for Laura Stigger
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
Laura Stigger was on the podium again in Mont-Sainte-Anne
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
Laura Stigger on the trails in Cyprus
© Mirja Geh/Red Bull Content Pool
Laura Stigger on the hunt in Lenzerheide
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool