Helen Weber and Raphaela Richter have made history at the UCI World Championships in Finale Ligure. Weber won the E-Enduro title on Saturday. A day later, Richter also secured gold in the classic enduro. This marks the first time that UCI World Championship titles in the elite enduro and e-enduro categories have gone to German riders.
Helen Weber wins the E-Enduro race
Weber dominated the E-Enduro, winning all six special stages. With a total time of 44:37.705 minutes, she relegated the French riders Laura Charles and Estelle Charles to second and third place respectively. Weber clocked the fastest time on five stages, whilst on the final stage she recorded the second-fastest time. It was a clear victory, as Laura Charles finished a full minute and 18 seconds behind. Fourth place also went to a German: Ines Thoma, a mother of two, narrowly missed out on the podium.
World champion Helen Weber was riding her sponsor Rotwild’s new Avinox Enduro. We tested this versatile carbon bike already discussed in detail in this article.
Raphaela Richter is crowned Enduro World Champion
On Sunday, Richter made her big debut in the Enduro. The race proved to be much closer than Weber’s victory the previous day. Everything was still up for grabs right up until the final stage on the iconic “DH Men” trail. On the demanding track, Richter managed to defend her lead by the narrowest of margins, finishing third. The German won the race after six stages, just 1.575 seconds ahead of France’s Isabeau Courdurier, who made up a lot of ground on the DH Men with an outstanding fastest time. Bronze went to the Italian Nadine Ellecosta. The demanding course covered 76 kilometres and included 2,131 metres of elevation gain and 2,349 metres of elevation loss.
The predecessor to Raphaela Richter’s Race-Enduro, We’ve already had a chance to try out the Crossworx Dash. However, Richter’s current racing bike, with its new frame and a clear focus on German components, is in a completely different league.
A historic success for German enduro racing
The UCI awarded the first world championship titles in Enduro and E-Enduro in 2024. At that time, Raphaela Richter won bronze in E-Enduro; there were no German gold medallists. In 2025, too, the elite titles went to riders from other nations. However, the Enduro category has a much longer tradition. Since 2013, world champions have been crowned annually in the Enduro World Series (EWS). There have been no titles in the elite category for German athletes in all those years. The double victory in the Enduro Mecca of Finale Ligure is therefore anything but ordinary.
The success of the two female riders comes at a difficult time for enduro cycling. The UCI, together with Warner Brothers, has announced that the EDR Enduro World Cup 2027 will be removed from the calendar. The EDR-E e-enduro series had already been dropped from the programme in 2026. Now, athletes are worried about their sponsorship deals, whilst enduro fans are concerned about the future of a dedicated platform for the sport at the highest level. However, there is hope for a fresh start: We spoke to veteran enduro rider Christian Textor about the launch of a new enduro racing series; you can find all the details via the link below.
Textor in ninth place
In the men’s event, Australia’s Ryan Gilchrist claimed the World Championship title in Enduro. After six stages, he won with a lead of 4.860 seconds over Canada’s Elliot Jamieson and the American Richie Rude. The best-placed German was Moritz Silberhorn in 22nd place. In the E-Enduro, France’s Adrien Dailly triumphed ahead of his compatriot Damien Oton and Belgium’s Martin Maes. Christian Textor was the best-placed German, finishing in a strong ninth place. Germany’s number one enduro rider had retired from the World Cup circuit at the end of the 2026 season. Since then, the father of four has only appeared sporadically on the starting line of enduro races.
Florentin Vesenbeckh
Editor CvD