Jack Ward has won the elite men’s cross-country title at the 2026 GWM Mountain Bike National Championships MT Buller.
After silver last year in atrocious conditions, the weather couldn’t have been more perfect for Ward to claim his maiden elite XCO crown.
From the first lap the Victorian laid down the race plan of ‘catch me if you can’.
The Victorian raced solo for the majority of the race.
“I just wanted to rip the first lap and put everyone in the red and I could recover quicker and go from there,” Ward said.
And by the half-way mark the lead had grown to more than a minute with Harry Doye, doing his best to reel in the runaway leader.
But this time Ward wasn’t going to let it slip by as he crossed the line after seven laps with a fist in the air.
“The last few years I stepped up and thought I had a chance, but I’ve just missed it, so it was really good to get it done,” Ward said.
It is the second gold medal for Ward across the championships after taking out the XCC title two days earlier.
Jack Ward celebrates his first national elite XCO title.
Harry Doye, in his first year in elite’s, held out Bendigo’s Tasman Nankervis to take the silver only two months after breaking his clavicle.
“That was brutal, Jack just took off and tried to hold on but couldn’t,” the 19 year-old said.
Harry Doye rode to a silver medal in his first elite national championships.
Joel Dodds and Reuben Page-Brown were involved in a duel in the Under 23 men’s race over the six laps.
Little separated the duo until the final lap where the Tasmanian made his move.
“Half-way up the trail on the fire road section and I knew I had to get around him so I gave it all I had and died to the finish,” Page-Brown said.
In the junior men, Connor Wright had the race all to himself as he powered away over the five laps to the gold medal minutes ahead of Oliver Grande and Levi Billings who filled the minor placings.
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)
Full results can be found here.
Photo Credit: Matt Rousu Photography