Canada is rolling deep in Valais, Switzerland this week, fielding what could be the country’s strongest cross country world championship team in years. After just one day of racing, the team already has a world title in short track (XCC), courtesy of Isabella Holmgren, and two more medals from Jenn Jackson and Cole Punchard. And the week is just getting started.

Canada has had strong XC teams in the past, of course. There’s a long list of Canadian world champions, World Cup winners and worlds medallists. But there are very few years where there is a rider, or multiple riders poised to carry the maple leaf onto a worlds podium in almost every race category, all week.

From juniors to elites: Canada shows of depth of talent

After Tuesday’s XCC medal bonanza, the Team Relay is up next on Thursday. If all of our top riders sign on to race, it could be the first year in a while that Canada could go head-to-head against the powerhouse Swiss and French teams. That’s because, from juniors to elites, Canada has a top-ranking rider.

When the XCO racing begins on Friday, Canada will be led by Rafaelle Carrier. The Quebec racer already has an XCO world championships medal to her name, earning silver in the event 2024. Since then, Carriere added junior cyclocross World Cup wins and another worlds medal, finishing with a bronze at 2025 CX world champs.

Nico Knoll, Maude Ruelland and Lily Rose Marois join Carrierre in the junior womens race while Émilien Belzile, Ethan Wood, Evan Moore, Nicolas Gauthier and Tristan Taillefer contest the men’s.

Under-23 XCO

When the under-23 line up, Canada has a remarkable depth of field. Isabella Holmgren leads, aiming to defend her 2024 world championship in the category. She’ll be joined by her twin sister Ava Holmgren (9th in XCC on Tuesday), and World Cup winner Ella MacPhee (6th Tuesday) as well as U23 national champ, Marin Lowe. Isabella Holmgren and Lowe have already shared a world championships podium when the trio dominated the 2023. Nicole Bradbury and Ella Myers join that quartet on the start line.

Also in 2023 same year, Ian Ackert also won a junior men’s XCO medal, taking bronze. He lines up for the under-23 race this year alongside Tuesday’s U23 XCC medallist, Cole Punchard. Punchard is having a breakout year since joining Cannondale Factory Racing, leading a significant part of the last elite men’s XCO World Cup before flatting and still finishing top 10. That incredible showing will give the Canadian, and his equally noteworthy haircut, all the confidence he needs going back into the under-23 category for this week’s worlds racing. Maxime St. Onge, Owen Clark and Zorak Paille round out the field.

Elite XCO

Finally, in the elite events, a quartet of Canucks will line up. Jenn Jackson has raced with remarkable consistency this year, repeatedly finishing inside the top 10. On Tuesday, she converted that potential to hardware with a bronze medal. That’s her best world championships performance, so far. She’ll be joined by Emilly Johnston, who earned multiple World Cup medals as as under-23 before graduating to the elite ranks this season.

Likewise in the men’s race, Carter Woods carries a string of U23 World Cup wins into the elite racing. He’ll race alongside Tyler Orschel.