Cairns Retrospective With Bart Brentjens - Cairns World Champs 2017

Cairns, Australia. A venue which has a rich history in the world of mountain biking, with World Cups in both 1994 and 1995 as well as hosting the World Championships in 1996. A different era. Mountain biking has evolved quite a bit since then, as bikes and athletes became better and race formats changed to what they are now. We met up with Dutchman Bart Brentjens, who won the 1994 XCO World Cup in Cairns, the World Championships in Kirchzarten 1995 and last but not least the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

If you look back at 1994 and compare it to racing today, what pops up in your mind?

There are quite some differences looking back. I came here in 1994 all by myself. I did not have any support like nowadays. No mechanic, no support or anything. A local soigneur took care of me at the race though, she was also the person to hand me my water bottles during the race. I came here as I just won the leader's jersey in Mammoth, I didn't plan to go before. But as I wanted to maintain the lead, I had to go. We had ten races back then and it was important to get your points. If anything broke on your bike, you had to fix it or get someone to fix it. If you flat, you put in a new tyre. It was definitely an adventure.

Having ridden both courses in 1994 as well as this years 2017 course, what are the key differences?

I think the course was over 10 kilometres in length back then. We used to race for over 2,5 hours. I vividly remember the dust and heat, just as it is now. Today's courses are more technical, steeper and dynamic. Races are shorter. Back then the course went up higher, I think we went all the way to the top, behind Jacob's ladder. I'd say cross country races in general back then more like marathon races nowadays. I think this course is not even the hardest. Nove Mesto, Albstadt, they are all hard for me. There are a couple of really hard sections here in Cairns. I don't have anything to prove anymore, I know how much crashing hurts. I'll take the B-line.

What's the difference riding a World Cup versus the World Champs?

World Cups you ride for yourself and your team. The World Championships are special. You're riding for your country. The rainbow stripes last a lifetime. It is indeed a very special thing. You will not win a lot of these, everything has to fall into place. In 1995 I won my one and only World Championships. At that time, I figured I'd win more for sure, being very confident in my riding at the time. It would be my only World title, although I did win more World Cups. As for Olympics, most will only be able to ride one or two in their career.


Nino Schurter and Julien Absalon's performance is quite exceptional with both at five World Champ titles. I think the beauty of mountain biking lies in its international character. There are so many nations competing and competition is close. It is a global sport and this is reflected by the field we see at the start today in Cairns.