Life Time just dropped the full roster for the 2026 Life Time Grand Prix. For certain, the fifth edition of this off-road endurance series is the most international and competitive field yet.
Riders from 11 countries and five continents will line up for six of the toughest gravel and mountain races in the U.S., all fighting for their share of the $590,000 prize purse and a place in Grand Prix history.
A Global Mix of Talent
The 2026 lineup features 44 elite athletes: 22 women and 22 men. All handpicked from a record-breaking pool of applicants across 24 countries. Nineteen of those selected hail from outside the U.S.
What if you didn’t get picked? The Wild Card format returns after its successful debut in 2025. Any athlete who applied for the 2026 series and raced both the Sea Otter Classic Gravel and the Unbound 200 can qualify. The top three men and women will earn full Grand Prix starts, with potential alternates added if roster changes occur before July 1, 2026.
Women’s Field: Legends, New Faces, and Rising Stars
Three-time defending champion Sofía Gómez Villafañe returns to defend her crown, facing a field deeper than ever before. Heavy hitters like Lauren De Crescenzo, Sarah Sturm, and Paige Onweller will be joined by European talent and fresh U23 power. Joining the series for the first time are: Karolina Migoń (Poland), double winner of The Traka 360 and reigning Unbound 200 champ; Rosa Klöser (Germany), and Ruth Holcomb (USA), the 2025 U23 overall winner.
2026 Women’s Life Time Grand Prix Roster:
(Photo/LifeTime)
(Photo/LifeTime)
Men’s Field: Jones vs. Swenson — and a Few New Threats
The men’s field reads like a “best of” list of modern gravel and XC endurance. Cameron Jones, the 2025 overall champion, returns to defend against Keegan Swenson, the three-time series winner hungry to reclaim the top step.
They’ll be joined by Matthew Beers, Cole Paton, Payson McElveen, and Alexey Vermeulen. Still, a wave of European stars could shake things up, including Andreas Seewald, the reigning European MTB champion, and Simen Nordahl Svendsen, the 2024 Gravel Earth Series winner.
2026 Men’s Life Time Grand Prix Roster:
(Photo/LifeTime)
The U23 Pathway Continues
Life Time’s U23 development program returns, offering automatic 2027 Grand Prix qualifications for next year’s top young male and female riders. Applications remain open through March 1, 2026.
What’s Next?
The 2026 Life Time Grand Prix kicks off at the Sea Otter Classic Gravel in April, then rolls through UNBOUND Gravel, Leadville Trail 100 MTB, Chequamegon MTB, Little Sugar MTB, and the finale, Big Sugar Gravel in Bentonville this October.
Full details and athlete profiles: lifetimegrandprix.com
