Enduro World Series head honco Chris Ball talks us through the thinking behind the World Champion award for the series and announces that Anka Martin will design the inaugural trophy.

Here’s what Chris says:

The yellow jersey, pink jersey, green jersey, polka dot jersey. The rainbow stripes. Cycling is full of iconic trophies, and the new Enduro World Series aims to offer nothing less with today’s announcement of the designers, artists and riders who have accepted the invitation to design and manufacture the series’ first prize for the World Champion.

The announcement both creates a new tradition for the Enduro World Series, and breaks with tradition by awarding the World Champion title to the Enduro World Series’ overall winner, rather than the winner of a single World Championship race within the series.

Explains EWS Managing Director Chris Ball, “Traditionally, winning the trophy meant winning a one day World Championship. Enduro World Series won’t have a one day World Championship. Instead, the rider who wins the Overall Series will be crowned the World Champion. Enduro is a combination of a lot of individual stages, so the World Champion should be the one who rides all the stages, the overall best.”

The new tradition being established will mean an annual call-out within the extended Enduro community for an artist or designer to design and craft the trophy.

Anka Martin, along with husband Sven, has agreed to serve as designer of the inaugural trophy.

Bike pilgrims and former South Africans, Anka Martin and her photojournalist husband Sven, live their Antipodean summers in the “sunniest town in New Zealand” where they guide epic MTB trips, and out of a trusty European-based van for the northern riding season, from which Anka races enduro and other disciplines and Sven photographs the World Cup circuit.

Anka has put in thousands of kilometres in the saddle for years racing the likes of the Trans-Provence, the Megavalanche, Enduro Nations, Mountain of Hell, and Cape Epic rides. Also an artist, with a background in textile design, Anka recently collaborated on the design of the SDG Allure women’s saddle.

Their design will be brought to life by Edinburgh-based artisan, Simon Muir. A furniture maker and bike racer, Muir handmakes wooden mudguards for bikes and is renowned for his skill and detailed eye.

“This fits with the creative, rider focussed nature of the Enduro World Series and our commitment to making the community part of the organisation in every way. Sven and Anka are totally ingrained in the Enduro community, and Simon’s craftsmanship is unparalleled. I personally am super excited to have him bring their ideas to life.” Managing Director Chris Ball.

Hit up www.enduroworldseries.com