No Pogacar and Van der Poel at 2030 Winter Games as IOC shuts door on cyclocross bid

The discipline had been pushing for inclusion alongside cross-country running, with both sports arguing that their traditional place in the autumn and winter calendar made them natural candidates for a broader Winter Games programme. 

But the International Olympic Committee has now made clear that it does not intend to open the door to sports contested away from snow and ice.

“There is no room for summer sports at the Winter Games,” IOC president Kirsty Coventry said on Thursday. “It is only about sports on snow and ice.”

A formal decision on the 2030 Olympic programme is expected in June, but the IOC’s position leaves little room for optimism. Under the current Olympic Charter, sports admitted to the Winter Games must be practised on snow or ice, a rule that has long been the central obstacle for cyclocross.

The UCI had hoped that the 2030 Games, to be held in the Haute-Savoie, could provide the breakthrough. Its president, David Lappartient, has been one of the strongest advocates for cyclocross gaining Olympic status, while the governing body also sought support from leading riders including Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar and Puck Pieterse.

“We asked those men to make a video, which we could send to the organising committee of the 2030 Winter Games and also to the IOC,” UCI sports director Peter Van Den Abeele said at the end of 2025.

However, the proposal faced immediate opposition from traditional winter sports federations. The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) stated that adding "some summer sports" would undermine the Winter Games' identity.

"The image of the Winter Games is unique - it is a celebration for sports that are practiced on ice or snow, with a clear culture associated with it," the FIS said in a statement.

That argument has now prevailed. For cyclocross, the IOC’s position is a major setback after months in which its Olympic prospects had appeared increasingly positive. Earlier this year, IOC president Sebastian Coe even told The Guardian there was a “good chance” that cyclocross and cross-country running would be part of the 2030 Winter Games.

Those hopes have now been put on hold. While nothing has been definitively ruled out for future editions, including the 2034 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, cyclocross will not make its Olympic debut in 2030.