Great Britain names Worlds cyclo-cross squad as reigning elite women’s champion misses out
British Cycling has confirmed its squad for the 2026 Cyclo-cross World Championships in Hulst, led by Cam Mason and Zoe Backstedt, but the continued omission of the reigning elite and under-23 women’s national champions — and a forceful response from Spectra Racing — again brings questions of selection criteria and progression in British women’s cyclo-cross into focus.
British Cycling has named a 10-strong squad to represent Great Britain at the 2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Hulst, Netherlands, from 30 January to 1 February, with the selection once again excluding the reigning elite women’s national champion.
The squad is led by Cam Mason, who arrives at the championships after the strongest season of his career to date. Mason has recorded 11 top-ten finishes in the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup this winter, including a first podium at Flamanville, alongside a fifth-place result at the European Championships.
In the elite women’s race, Zoe Backstedt will make her World Championships debut at elite level after stepping up from the under-23 category. A three-time world champion across junior and U23 ranks, Backstedt’s winter has been disrupted by early-season injury, though she has still secured three top-five international finishes.
The under-23 men’s selection features Oscar Amey, who moves up from the junior ranks, alongside Ben Askey and Declan Oldham, both of whom will make their World Championships debuts. All three have posted encouraging results internationally during the season.
2026 Lloyds National Cyclo-Cross Championships. Elite Open, Winner Cameron Mason. Image: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com SWpix.com
In the junior women’s races, Zoe Roche will contest the rainbow jersey following a breakthrough winter that included her first international victory at the Overijse Telenet Superprestige and three top-ten World Cup finishes. She will be joined by debutant Peggy Knox, who has impressed in her first season racing internationally, including a career-best third place in Gullegem.
The junior men’s squad is led by returning World Championships rider Milo Wills, who has been working back to form after illness earlier in the season. He is joined by Jacob Steed and Luke Trafford, both selected for their first appearances on the world stage after promising World Cup performances.
The selection means that, for a second successive season, the reigning elite women’s national champion and the current women’s under-23 national champion will not represent Great Britain at the World Championships. At the 2026 Lloyds National Cyclo-cross Championships, Anna Flynn claimed the elite women’s title, while the under-23 jersey was won by Elena Day, with both riders racing for Spectra Racing. Neither rider has been selected for the Worlds squad.
The omission echoes last season’s World Championships selection, when the 2025 elite women’s national champion Xan Crees was also left out of the Great Britain squad. with Great Britain fielding no riders in the elite women’s race. Speaking to The British Continental at the time, Crees described the decision as disappointing but unsurprising given the selection criteria in place, and argued that those criteria should be reviewed to allow greater representation and clearer progression from domestic success to international championships.
Spectra Racing, the team representing Flynn and Day, said the latest omission reflected a wider structural issue within British cyclo-cross selection.
2026 Lloyds National Cyclo-Cross Championships. Elite Female – Winner Anna Flynn (Spectra Racing). Image: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com SWpix.com
“It’s once again disappointing to see our new elite and under-23 women’s national champions not selected for the World Championships,” Spectra Racing management said, describing the opportunity as “once in a lifetime” for both riders. The team questioned the reliance on ‘podium potential’ as a primary selection criterion, arguing that without access to world-class racing opportunities, riders are unable to demonstrate progression at the highest level.
Spectra Racing also warned that an approach focused too narrowly on immediate results risks shrinking opportunity across the discipline, pointing to “a pool of riders that show ‘potential’” whose development depends on domestic teams and exposure to international racing. “If every National Federation only chose riders based on ‘podium potential’ there would only ever be three or four riders in each race,” the team said, adding that repeated attempts to engage with British Cycling on making selection for World Cups and World Championships more inclusive have “only been met with a reluctance to engage.”
British Cycling has consistently emphasised that World Championships selection is based on international performance, trajectory and suitability for championship racing, rather than domestic results alone.
Stephen Park CBE, Performance Director for the Great Britain Cycling Team, said the championships offered both competitive opportunity and developmental value.
“It’s always fantastic to have GBCT representation at the cyclo-cross world championships and I’m excited to see some riders taking on new categories,” Park said. “The championships give riders the opportunity to race for themselves but also as part of a dynamic team, which is a huge opportunity for younger rider development.”
Spectra Racing statement (in full)
In response to the selection, Spectra Racing issued the following statement to The British Continental:
“It’s once again disappointing to see our new Elite and U23 women’s National Champion’s not selected for the World Championships. A once in a lifetime opportunity for Anna and Elena, but unfortunately, it is the classic story the GBCT (British Cycling) tell every season about a discipline they care very little about.
“Their criteria for selection for World Championships lies under the phrase ‘podium potential’; we understand that there has to be a standard and a criteria, but that doesn’t make it necessarily right. Not to take away from those that have been selected, they deserve to be there. But the racing opportunities have to be inclusive of everyone.
“There’s a pool of riders that show ‘potential’, and their only way to grow are through teams like us and Hope and Exact PowerVersa to name a few, AND selection for these World class races. If every National Federation only chose riders based on ‘podium potential’ there would only ever be three or four riders in each race.
“We have tried on numerous occasions to understand and provide our opinion on how the selection for both World Championships and World Cups can be better and more inclusive, but it has only been met with a reluctance to engage.
“Obviously we’re disappointed for our riders Anna Flynn, Elena Day and Xan Crees last year. But, there is very little point engaging. It’s part of a wider problem. This is just the tip of the iceberg.”
— Gina Ball and Josh Hand
Great Britain squad – 2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships
British Cycling has named a 10-strong squad to represent Great Britain at the 2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Hulst, Netherlands, from 30 January to 1 February, with the selection once again excluding the reigning elite women’s national champion.
The squad is led by Cam Mason, who arrives at the championships after the strongest season of his career to date. Mason has recorded 11 top-ten finishes in the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup this winter, including a first podium at Flamanville, alongside a fifth-place result at the European Championships.
In the elite women’s race, Zoe Backstedt will make her World Championships debut at elite level after stepping up from the under-23 category. A three-time world champion across junior and U23 ranks, Backstedt’s winter has been disrupted by early-season injury, though she has still secured three top-five international finishes.
The under-23 men’s selection features Oscar Amey, who moves up from the junior ranks, alongside Ben Askey and Declan Oldham, both of whom will make their World Championships debuts. All three have posted encouraging results internationally during the season.
In the junior women’s races, Zoe Roche will contest the rainbow jersey following a breakthrough winter that included her first international victory at the Overijse Telenet Superprestige and three top-ten World Cup finishes. She will be joined by debutant Peggy Knox, who has impressed in her first season racing internationally, including a career-best third place in Gullegem.
The junior men’s squad is led by returning World Championships rider Milo Wills, who has been working back to form after illness earlier in the season. He is joined by Jacob Steed and Luke Trafford, both selected for their first appearances on the world stage after promising World Cup performances.
The selection means that, for a second successive season, the reigning elite women’s national champion and the current women’s under-23 national champion will not represent Great Britain at the World Championships. At the 2026 Lloyds National Cyclo-cross Championships, Anna Flynn claimed the elite women’s title, while the under-23 jersey was won by Elena Day, with both riders racing for Spectra Racing. Neither rider has been selected for the Worlds squad.
The omission echoes last season’s World Championships selection, when the 2025 elite women’s national champion Xan Crees was also left out of the Great Britain squad. with Great Britain fielding no riders in the elite women’s race. Speaking to The British Continental at the time, Crees described the decision as disappointing but unsurprising given the selection criteria in place, and argued that those criteria should be reviewed to allow greater representation and clearer progression from domestic success to international championships.
Spectra Racing, the team representing Flynn and Day, said the latest omission reflected a wider structural issue within British cyclo-cross selection.
“It’s once again disappointing to see our new elite and under-23 women’s national champions not selected for the World Championships,” Spectra Racing management said, describing the opportunity as “once in a lifetime” for both riders. The team questioned the reliance on ‘podium potential’ as a primary selection criterion, arguing that without access to world-class racing opportunities, riders are unable to demonstrate progression at the highest level.
Spectra Racing also warned that an approach focused too narrowly on immediate results risks shrinking opportunity across the discipline, pointing to “a pool of riders that show ‘potential’” whose development depends on domestic teams and exposure to international racing. “If every National Federation only chose riders based on ‘podium potential’ there would only ever be three or four riders in each race,” the team said, adding that repeated attempts to engage with British Cycling on making selection for World Cups and World Championships more inclusive have “only been met with a reluctance to engage.”
British Cycling has consistently emphasised that World Championships selection is based on international performance, trajectory and suitability for championship racing, rather than domestic results alone.
Stephen Park CBE, Performance Director for the Great Britain Cycling Team, said the championships offered both competitive opportunity and developmental value.
“It’s always fantastic to have GBCT representation at the cyclo-cross world championships and I’m excited to see some riders taking on new categories,” Park said. “The championships give riders the opportunity to race for themselves but also as part of a dynamic team, which is a huge opportunity for younger rider development.”
Spectra Racing statement (in full)
In response to the selection, Spectra Racing issued the following statement to The British Continental:
“It’s once again disappointing to see our new Elite and U23 women’s National Champion’s not selected for the World Championships. A once in a lifetime opportunity for Anna and Elena, but unfortunately, it is the classic story the GBCT (British Cycling) tell every season about a discipline they care very little about.
“Their criteria for selection for World Championships lies under the phrase ‘podium potential’; we understand that there has to be a standard and a criteria, but that doesn’t make it necessarily right. Not to take away from those that have been selected, they deserve to be there. But the racing opportunities have to be inclusive of everyone.
“There’s a pool of riders that show ‘potential’, and their only way to grow are through teams like us and Hope and Exact PowerVersa to name a few, AND selection for these World class races. If every National Federation only chose riders based on ‘podium potential’ there would only ever be three or four riders in each race.
“We have tried on numerous occasions to understand and provide our opinion on how the selection for both World Championships and World Cups can be better and more inclusive, but it has only been met with a reluctance to engage.
“Obviously we’re disappointed for our riders Anna Flynn, Elena Day and Xan Crees last year. But, there is very little point engaging. It’s part of a wider problem. This is just the tip of the iceberg.”
— Gina Ball and Josh Hand
Great Britain squad – 2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships
Elite men
Cam Mason
Elite women
Zoe Backstedt
Under-23 men
Oscar Amey
Ben Askey
Declan Oldham
Junior men
Jacob Steed
Luke Trafford
Milo Wills
Junior women
Peggy Knox
Zoe Roche
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