History Made at the 2026 MTB Nationals

The 2026 GWM Mountain Biking National Championships took place at Mt Buller last weekend, with the first stripes gained in the XCC event on Friday the 20th, Downhill finals on Saturday and finishing with a bang (or puff?) with the XCO on Sunday. 

How is the sport going? Well the experience of trying to find a park on the Saturday highlighted that the crowds are there and ready to cheer on the nation’s fastest downhillers. 

In the end, the crowds were treated to a history-making ride in the Elite Men’s DH, with Luke Meier-Smith taking his fourth consecutive win – matching the record-breaking four consecutive wins in the DH discipline taken by Tracey Hannah and Troy Brosnan. Jackson Connelly and Zac Bradley rounded out the Elite podium.

In the Women’s DH it was Eleni Turkovic that sped to victory – a first year Elite rider. Anyone with a finger of the pulse of Downhill would know that Eleni has been fast and furious around the Australian scene, often laying down overall fastest times of the day as an U19. It was a star-studded podium with former national champs Ellie Smith and Sian A’Hearn taking silver and bronze.

In the XCO, racers were treated to an old-school Alpine course – what it lacked in engaging singletrack it made up for with lung-busting climbs and sketchy descents on gravel walking paths. It was survival of the fittest at altitude in the Elite Men’s race, with LIDL/Trek rider Jack Ward stomping to a dominant win – taking the lead straight from the gun. National series leader Harry Doye rode a smart and strong race to second – choosing to step up from his U23 category to test the legs in elite. XCO veteran of the sport, Tasman Nankervis rode a strong race to third. 

In the Elite Women’s XCO, no one came close to challenging 13x National Champion Rebecca Henderson for the win – with a smooth race with laser-like focus making amends for her 2025 race where she clenched the win: with a broken shoulder. Sarah Tucknott took the silverware showing her comeback is a force to be reckoned with, and Katriina Dower finished third. 

2026 MTB National Championships results

XCO – ELITE MEN
– Jack Ward (Yarra Ranges Mountain Bikers)
– Harry Doye (Red Hill Riders MTBC)
– Tasman Nankervis (Bendigo & District CC) 

XCO – U23 MEN
– Reuben Page-Brown (Hobart Dirt Devils)
– Joel Dodds (Ipswich Off-Road Cyclists)
– Eddie Willis (Tamworth CC) 

XCO – JUNIOR MEN
– Connor Wright (South West Mountain Bike Club)
– Oliver Grande (Canberra Off-Road Cyclists)
– Levi Billings (Wangaratta Cycling Club) 

XCO – ELITE WOMEN
– Rebecca Henderson – (Canberra Off-Road Cyclists)
– Sarah Tucknott – (Perth Mountain Bike Club)
– Katriina Dower – (GMBC)

XCO U23 WOMEN
– Ruby Taylor – (Hawthorn Cycling Club)
– Ella Menigoz – (Rats Cycling Club Inc)
– Elle De Nooyer – (Darling Downs Cycling Club)

XCO U19 WOMEN
– Freya Buckmaster – (Hobart Wheelers Dirt Devils CC)
– Alana Fletcher – (Bendigo Mountain Bike Club)
– Amaya Shaw – (Hunter Mountain Bike Association)

DH – ELITE MEN
– Luke Meier-Smith – (Manning Great Lakes Tip Riders) – 2:53.907
– Jackson Connelly – (Jindabyne Cycling Club) – 2:55.439
– Zac Bradley (Jindabyne Cycling Club) – 2:56.439

DH – JUNIOR MEN 
– Daniel Turkovic – (Garigal Gorillas Inc) – 3:00.000
– Jonte Tummon – (Hobart Wheelers Dirt Devils) – 3:00.294
– Oliver Colthup – (Toowoomba Mountain Bike Club) – 3:00.792

DH – ELITE WOMEN
– Elleni Turkovic – (Garrigal Gorrilas Inc) 3:21.510
– Ellie Smith – (Central Coast MTB Inc) 3:26.589
– Sian A’Hern (Canberra Off-Road Cyclists) 3:26.718

DH – JUNIOR WOMEN
– Tilly Boadle – (Red Hill Riders Inc) 3:17.915
– Zuri Acheson – (Garrigals Gorrilas Inc) 3:24.785
– Matilda Henness – (Jindabyne Trail Stewardship) 3:32.573