The 2026 South African Schools Mountain Bike Championships were successfully hosted by Western Cape Schools Cycling and Paul Roos Gymnasium at Coetzenberg in Stellenbosch early this month. The multi-day event featured both Primary Schools and High Schools contests, as well as Inter-school and Inter-province racing for each. It was a lot more than a collection of school kids racing though. Here’s why…
By Sean Badenhorst | Photos: Ruben Oosthuizen
The numbers tell a powerful story. A total of 540 riders from 110 primary schools and 530 riders from 115 high schools competed at the national championships. But those numbers represent only the tip of the schools mountain bike racing pyramid.
The base of that pyramid is significant, with at least 57 schools mountain bike races organised to a very high standard across the country. These events deliver dynamic racing across all skill and fitness levels, from five-year-olds through to 19-year-olds. The best riders from each province then earn the right to represent their school and province at the national finals.
“The standard of the competition has noticeably increased over previous years and the course that was set by Paul Roos Gymnasium was definitely a step up in terms of its technical nature and natural features at Coetzenberg,” said Tobias Lubbe, President of Schools Cycling South Africa, following the 2026 finals.
“If you look at the results, Gauteng has the most schools in the Top 10 in both Primary Schools and High Schools, showcasing Gauteng’s depth,” added Lubbe. “For a province that generally has tamer race courses, this is a good showing. Many of the riders impressed with their ability to race with confidence on what was the most demanding course to host the national finals.”
There was also an interesting result at the top of the school standings, with Mpumalanga’s Secunda Hoërskool taking the overall school prize.
“It shows the value of taking the national final around the country,” said Lubbe. “Last year, Piet Retief, a town in Mpumalanga not far from Secunda, hosted the national finals and that has clearly had a positive effect on the standard of racing in the region.”
At the 2026 national finals, schools racing took place on Day 1, followed by provincial racing on Day 2. The provincial teams consisted of the top three riders from each province in each age division. Each school, meanwhile, is permitted to enter up to two qualifying boys teams (12 boys) and two qualifying girls teams (10 girls) in total across the age categories, provided they meet the qualifying criteria.
Sound familiar? It should. The structure is based on the hugely successful Spur Schools Series, founded by the late Meurant Botha, which formed an important layer of South African mountain bike racing before the South African Covid-19 restrictions effectively crushed it. After lockdown, the races were gone, but the racing spirit remained.
Schools Cycling South Africa and Cycling South Africa MTB then worked together to secure provincial colours recognition for schools mountain biking. That, it seems, was the catalyst. Schools around the country began recognising mountain biking as an official school sport and a new generation of racers started to emerge.
Provincial body volunteers, teachers and parents have since built multi-round race series in each region. Highly structured events at family-friendly venues and schools now deliver energy-filled days of age-group racing, creating opportunities for everyone from little humans on small mountain bikes to teenagers chasing national titles.
The value of this layer in the mountain biking infrastructure is immense. Entry numbers per event range from a few hundred to more than 1500 riders. And because none of these young racers can drive themselves to the events yet, every rider brings a support network that can include parents, siblings, grandparents and family friends. All of those people are being exposed to mountain bike racing and the joy, lessons, challenges and rewards that come with it.
It is not the same thing, but it is worth noting that South African rugby at provincial and national level sits proudly at the peak of several layers of a talent-rich, skill-heavy pyramid. Schools rugby continues to deliver crop after crop of players, creating the depth required to keep South Africa among the best rugby nations in the world.
Schools mountain biking is in its infancy by comparison. But that is not the important point. The important point is that the foundational structure is now in place. Learners at hundreds of schools across South Africa have the opportunity to race mountain bikes, improve their skills and develop physically and mentally through competition.
And while the established schools naturally dominate much of the schools racing landscape, Schools Cycling at provincial level is also ensuring that mountain biking groups from underprivileged areas receive assistance with transport and care so they can attend schools MTB series events.
That matters because it means these events are not simply creating opportunities for children who already have access to the sport. They are giving kids across the country the opportunity to race a mountain bike and decide whether it is their thing or not. Judging by the growth, there are clearly plenty who have decided that it is.
I have attended several Gauteng Schools MTB Series events over the past two years, covering both primary and high school racing. Each time, I have been blown away by the sheer number of entrants, but also by the level of support from schools and parents.
Not surprisingly, Gauteng has the biggest series in terms of numbers for both primary and high schools, and the growth has been remarkable.
PRIMARY SCHOOLS
Number of schools: 2022: 20 > 2026: 85 (325% growth)
Number of participants: 2022: 170 > 2026: 1500 (782% growth)
HIGH SCHOOLS
Number of schools: 2022: 60 > 2026: 84 (40% growth)
Number of participants: 2022: 500 > 2026: 792 (58% growth)
Both sets of numbers are impressive, but the primary school figures are particularly significant because those riders will eventually move into the high school league. And remember, this is only Gauteng.
Similar leagues operate in the other provinces, with the Western Cape, Southern Cape and Eastern Cape split because of the vast geographic area. Their numbers are not quite on Gauteng’s level, but their potential is, because they now have a stable foundation on which to build.
Support so far has come from the cycling industry, which sees the obvious value of the this early development layer. Cycle Lab, with its various partner brands, has been the presenting sponsor of the Gauteng High Schools Series for the past five years, adding its support for the KwaZulu-Natal series in 2025 and 2026. Titan Racing has supported the Western Cape Series (high schools and primary schools) for the past two years. And Giant/Liv (high schools) and Avalanche (primary schools) were the presenting sponsors of the 2026 National Finals.
The schools mountain bike series offer a prime sponsorship opportunity for corporate brands. Whether at regional or national level, the connection to young, active and ambitious families with disposable income is remarkable. More importantly, brands have the opportunity to become part of a genuine development story rather than simply placing a logo beside a race.
There is also a clear pathway between this foundation and the highest levels of the sport. Alan Hatherly won back-to-back Elite Men’s XCO World Championship titles in 2024 and 2025. His early development years included racing in the Spur Schools League.
Of course, desire, commitment, self-belief and the support of world-class team structures all played their part in Hatherly becoming a world champion. But his passion for mountain bike racing began at South African inter-schools races.
Having been involved in mountain biking since 1991, I have never been as encouraged about the future of the sport in this country as I am now.
Hatherly and others have shown what is possible for South African mountain bikers to achieve on the global stage. The national governing body for mountain biking is in a good place, most provincial bodies are well managed, and schools mountain bike racing is bristling with passion and potential.
And not all of the riders competing at schools mountain bike events will become XCO racers. In fact, only a small percentage will choose to race XCO beyond school. That does not make their involvement any less valuable.
Many will maintain their relationship with mountain biking and move into other disciplines such as Enduro, Downhill and Marathon. Others will simply continue riding recreationally, because mountain biking is one of the few sports that combines exercise and fun so naturally.
So, while you may see or hear bits and pieces about the 2026 South African Schools Mountain Bike Championships in Stellenbosch, there is a lot more to this event than the results and podiums suggest. It represents another important piece of evidence that the foundation of South African mountain biking is getting stronger.
We have published all the individual race results on our TREAD Events app. If you want to see how the riders, schools and provinces performed, click here.
