Seven races on a range of mostly brilliant courses make up the 2016 UCI DH World Cup calendar, with World Championships once again on the famously gnarly Val di Sole course in Italy (which hosted the event in 2008). Windham, USA is out, but La Bresse, France is back in, and to be honest the whole line up looks like it’s going to make for some sensational racing.

Here’s what the UCI have to say for the series, with the key events (i.e. DH races!) below:

“The Union Cycliste Internationale’s (UCI’s) 2016 season of major mountain bike events will be marked by the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the UCI World Championships in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic (for Olympic cross-country – XCO) and Val di Sole, Italy (downhill and four-cross – DHI and 4X), as well as the return of Cairns (Australia) and La Bresse (France) to the World Cup.

As in 2015, the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup presented by Shimano will include nine rounds in 2016. Of particular note:

– The World Cup will include six rounds for XCO and seven for DHI

– The Australian city of Cairns will return to the calendar (XCO and DHI) in what will be a dress rehearsal for the 2017 UCI World Championships. The French round in La Bresse (XCO) and the Andorra round in Vallnord (XCO and DHI) also return to the UCI World Cup calendar

– Lourdes, FRA (DHI), Albstadt, GER (XCO), Fort William, GBR (DHI), Leogang, AUT (DHI), Lenzerheide, SUI (XCO and DHI) and Mont-Sainte-Anne, CAN (XCO and DHI) will again be part of the series as they were in 2015.

The XCO mountain bike events at the Rio Olympic Games in Brazil will take place from August 20 to 21, the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Nove Mesto from June 28 to July 3 and the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Val di Sole from September 6 to 11.

The UCI Mountain Bike Marathon Championships will take place in Laissac (France) on June 25 and 26.”

Downhill calendar 2016:

9-10 April: Lourdes, France
23-24 April: Cairns, Australia
4-5 June: Fort William, Scotland
11-12 June: Leogang, Austria
9-10 July: Lenzerheide, Switzerland
6-7 August: Mont Sainte Anne, Canada
3-4 September: Vallnord, Andorra

6-11 September: World Championship, Val di Sole, Italy

Find the full UCI World Cup and Championship 2016 info here.