Read on and discover how to watch the Olympic mountain biking 2024. This guide explains how to catch the action wherever you happen to be in the world – including options to watch for free – as well as details of how to use a VPN to tune in if you’re away from home.
Now firmly on the Olympic schedule, mountain biking made its Olympic debut at the Atlanta 1996 Games – 100 years after track and road cycling made theirs.
The cross-country XCO course is in Élancourt, in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, where spectators may get views of the Eiffel Tower on a clear day. The 4.4km route will be pretty relentless, with 110 metres of elevation per lap, plenty of technical singletrack and fast descents, plus rock gardens, drops, jumps and flowy sections. Each race is likely to last between one and two hours.
Expect to see some serious talent and big names in both the men’s and women’s races. Tom Pidcock (GB) will be looking to hold onto his Olympic gold, although there will be some tough competition from the likes of Nino Schurter (CH) and Sam Gaze (NZ). In the women’s field, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (FR), Evie Richards (GB) and Puck Pieterse (NL) will all be targeting gold. Read on and find out how to watch the Olympics mountain biking from anywhere.
Watch Olympic mountain bike live streams in Australia
In Australia, cycling fans can watch most of the Olympic Games for free on Channel 9 and 9Gem – arguably the most complete free coverage in the world.
Viewers across the country can tune in to the 9Now streaming service across the smart device of their choosing to catch all the action in July and August.
Watch Olympic mountain biking live from anywhere
If you are outside of your home country and try to access your usual live streaming services to watch the action, you may find your access to be geo-restricted.
In this case, a VPN service will come in handy, allowing your computer to pretend it’s back home and let you log into your streaming accounts to catch all of the racing action.
Our colleagues at TechRadar thoroughly tested several VPN services and recommend NordVPN:
Watch Olympic mountain biking live streams in the UK
In the UK, Olympics coverage is available live and for free on BBC One and the BBC iPlayer – though you’ll need a valid TV Licence to tune in.
Not every sport is available all the time on the BBC, however, as the broadcaster is limited to two streams at any one time. The most complete Olympic Games coverage in the UK will therefore be streamed live on Discovery+, with 3,800 hours of live coverage across 55 channels.
A ‘Standard’ subscription to Discovery+, which includes Eurosport’s Olympics coverage, would usually set you back £6.99 but a special Olympics deal means you’ll be able to get it for a cut-price £3.99 per month until 11 August. Subscribe before then and you’ll pay that low price until the end of the year.
Watch Olympic mountain biking live streams in the USA
NBC hold the broadcasting rights for the Olympic Games in the USA. The Games will be broadcast live on NBC, as well as the network’s streaming service, Peacock TV and its TV channels including NBC, MSNBC, and the USA Network.
The women’s mountain biking will be on Paramount Plus only, while the men’s mountain biking will also be on USA Network.
A subscription to Peacock Premium starts from $7.99 per month or $79.99 per year. The ad-free Peacock Premium Plus costs $13.99 per month. Peacock TV offers a seven-day free trial for those who want to try before you buy.
USA Network is available via cable plans. Don’t have cable? No problem. Sling is a smart TV service that allows people in the US to watch cable channels on their TV, laptop or tablet without actually having to subscribe to an annual cable TV package. USA Network is available on Sling with the Sling Blue package, which costs $40 per month ($20 for the first month).
Watch Olympics mountain biking live streams in Canada
If you live in Canada, you can catch the Olympics across several broadcasters, including CBC, TSN, and Sportsnet.
CBC will be offering plenty of events throughout the Games for free on CBC Gem. Access to the broadcaster’s ad-free on-demand library costs $5.99 per month, though the ad-supported version is free of charge.
A TSN subscription will set you back $19.99 per month or $199.90 per year, while a standard Sportsnet SN Now subscription costs $19.99 per month or $179.99 per year.
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