2018 EWS Qualifier Calendar announced

THE ENDURO WORLD SERIES (EWS) IS COMING TO A RACE NEAR YOU AS THE LIST OF OFFICIAL QUALIFIER EVENTS GROWS TO 50 RACES SPREAD ACROSS 25 COUNTRIES AND FOUR CONTINENTS.

The expanded lists of races sees the EWS moving into new territories including Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Poland, Switzerland, Colombia and Slovakia. There will also be a race in Lesotho, marking the first time the EWS will hold an event in Africa. We’ll see three events take place on theses shores.

Taking place across four continents in 2018, the 50 events will allow the fastest riders a way to secure entry to their chosen EWS races. Enduro Mountain Bike Association (EMBA) members can gain points based on their results at these local races, with their best three results of the year totalled to generate their global qualifying ranking for the following year. More details about how the global ranking will be calculated will be released next week – along with some more big news…

Guaranteed, if you qualify, you may be watching this guy destroy the stages….

The Qualifier events were introduced in 2016, with 40 events taking place in 18 countries, and so far roughly 300 athletes have gained direct entry to this season’s races as a result of the system.

“The Qualifier events have been a real success when they were introduced in 2016 and it’s great to see them expanding this season. Demand for EWS entries grows year on year and the Qualifier events are a great way for riders, especially amateurs, to have a clear and fair pathway into the World Series. We’ve been overwhelmed by the number of applications we’ve had to host Qualifiers this year, and it’s great to see so many countries involved – with 43 nationalities already entered in this season’s EWS races it’s amazing to see how truly global the sport has become. It’s great to offer so many riders the chance to participate in the series and we look forward to seeing who rises through the Qualifier ranks to qualify for the main EWS races in 2019.”
Chris Ball, Managing Director of the Enduro World Series

2018 QUALIFIER EVENTS

QUALIFYING CRITERIA
Riders must be EMBA members in order to be eligible to collect EWS Qualifier Series ranking points / be added to the EWS Reserved List.  Riders MUST have the membership before the race – points will not be assigned retroactively.  The 2018 memberships will be available at the end of February .

Top ranked EMBA members competing in the 2018 Series will be added to the EWS Reserved List (to be published December 2018) and will be eligible for priority registration for all the 2019 EWS Rounds.  Total number of riders qualifying in each category (based on their final year end ranking) will be confirmed on January 16 (once the 2018 EWS Rules are published).

The top 3 racers in each official EWS category at every Qualifier Series will also be automatically added to the Reserved List (providing the racer is an EMBA member).

RANKING CALCULATIONS
The EWS only has 6 official categories. As the various EWS Qualifier Series events do not all use these 6 official categories, EWS Qualifier Series ranking points are assigned as follows. Riders are sorted into one of the following categories based on their year of birth.  Riders with an EMBA membership are  assigned ranking points for their finish position within that group.