Making the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships Trash Free with AON Racing

It’s safe to say we can’t celebrate the end of our Trash Free Races season, without commemorating the efforts of the first ever Trash Free Race Team - AON Racing!

Athletes are movers and shakers in more ways than one; as inspiring, hard working people with communities of their own, we jumped at the opportunity to work with the AON Racing team in their first year on the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup circuit and showcase just how simple taking care of our outdoor playgrounds could be.

Despite injuries, downpours and more chipmunks than you can imagine, the AON Racing team alongside our partner Net Performance undertook cleans at beloved race locations - from Val di Sole to Mount St Anne, working with event crew, spectators, and our own HQ team to leave the World Cup series as Trash Free as possible.

We sat down with Team Manager Grega Stopar to hear his reflections from the season.

What does being a Trash Free Race team mean to you?

Racing is never just about racing and results, it has to be more than that. Our team has a reputation on the mountain bike scene – because of the results, but also because riders and staff are involved in grassroots programmes, mentorship and advocacy. Trash Free Trails is an organisation and mission that we can easily step behind as we’re all very sensitive to keeping our surroundings clean. Using the voice of the team to elevate this kind of project is natural for us, and we’re glad to see that every year more people step behind it and do something.

How was your status as a Trash Free Race team received by other teams/riders?

Positive feedback from all sides, but at the same time we wish there would be more people joining on the actual TFT campaigns.

What was your highlight of the season?

Getting the other riders excited about Trash Free Races! Some of them joined us at some venues, but it was even better to get support of spectators and decided to join us after being inspired by the cause. It's good to see that people care.

Were there any challenges you faced?

Some of the venues were pretty clean, it was hard to find trash. But the real challenge was how to fit our trail clean efforts in the already extremely busy World Cup weekend schedule. I'm proud that we could showcase it could be done.

What do you hope to achieve with Trash Free Trails in 2026?

We want to include more people in the effort and make campaigns bigger. We also want to increase awareness about the wider issues of single-use pollution; the best way to keep trash out of trails is by not creating trash in the first place and not throwing it out there in the nature.

Thanks Grega! We can’t wait for the 2026 season, and to help protect these incredible trails for future generations of riders, together.