Glory in the Mud: Lillo and Frei Win History's First Asian XCO World Cup at YongPyong

Before the race started, Dario Lillo checked the weather. It had rained overnight — steadily, the kind of persistent mountain rain that doesn't pause long enough for the ground to drain. He woke up, walked outside, and made a decision. Today was going to be a running race.

The 23-year-old Swiss rider from Giant Factory Off-Road Team equipped his Shimano S-Phyre shoes with toe spikes for grip on the muddy climbs, swapped in Maxxis Beaver mud tyres for clearance and shedding, and simplified his drivetrain by removing a chainring to reduce clogging. He crossed the finish line of Round 1 of the 2026 WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series with 1 minute 46 seconds to spare. It was his first Elite World Cup XCO win — and the first UCI XCO World Cup ever held on Asian soil.

“I have never felt anything like this in my life," Lillo said. "When it started raining in the night and I woke up in the morning it was like, 'OK today is the day' — and I was so nervous before the start. During the race, until the last lap it was like I didn't really have any emotions in me, it was just executing and I crossed the finish line.”

The Course: New, Historic, and Very Muddy

MONA YongPyong's XCO circuit was cut into the north-facing lower slopes of the mountain used for Alpine ski events at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. The track features steep climbs, technical descents, and a mix of open snowmelt terrain and forested switchbacks — designed for XCO racing, which demands both climbing and technical sections rather than pure lift-served descent.

Overnight rain turned most of this into something else entirely. Deep mud on the climbs. No traction on the descents. Extended sections where the circuit became effectively unrideable even with purpose-fitted mud tyres. Riders ran. They pushed. They carried bikes over obstacles that had been manageable in dry previews. Cyclingnews described the race as one that "turns into a running competition" — not a metaphor, a literal description of what happened for lap after lap on the Korean hillside.

The race lasted over 80 minutes in the men's category. Most of it was spent on terrain Lillo described as something you execute through rather than attack.

Women's Race: Frei Doubles Up

Sina Frei (Specialized Factory Racing) had already won the XCC short track earlier in the event week. She doubled on the XCO to take the season opening weekend sweep in 1:27:03 — a dominant two-discipline result that puts her immediately at the top of the women's World Cup standings.

The conditions neutralised raw power advantage in favour of composure and mud-reading. Frei had both. Jenny Rissveds (Canyon XC Racing) held on for second at +0:26 — a narrow gap given the attrition levels throughout the field. Madigan Munro (Liv Factory Racing) took third at +0:28, her best World Cup XCO result to date. Jennifer Jackson (Orbea Fox Factory Team) was fourth at +0:35, with Martina Berta (Origine Racing Division) rounding out the top five at +1:18.

Lillo went to the front at the first corner and stayed there. The equipment decisions paid off almost immediately: Cube Racing's Treudler, who had removed the chain guide to reduce potential mud clogging, watched his chain come off repeatedly instead — the gamble backfired, costing him time and position on each lap. Other equipment choices ran visibly in the results: the riders who shedded mud cleanly moved through the course; those who didn't fought machinery instead of rivals.

Luca Martin (Cannondale Factory Racing) rode his way to second, finishing 1:46 back in what was a strong opening for the North American squad. Cannondale put two riders on the podium: Charlie Aldridge took third at +2:39. Jordan Sarrou (BMC Factory Racing) held on for fourth at +2:59, with Joshua Dubau (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) completing the top five at +3:03.

With the round-one win, Lillo moves immediately to the top of the men's UCI Mountain Bike World Series standings. Frei takes the same position in the women's series.

What This Round Means

This event was more than a season opener. YongPyong marks the first time the UCI Mountain Bike World Series has come to Asia — the first-ever XCO and XCC World Cup on the continent. The mud race at the 2026 opening round will be discussed for years in the technical conditions archive.

The series moves on to Europe. Lillo and Frei leave South Korea with leader jerseys and a round-one margin that makes both of them the ones to beat.

For a guide to riding and training around YongPyong and Gangwon Province, read our South Korea MTB destination guide.