Aaron Gwin

Aaron Holmes Gwin (born December 24, 1987) is an American professional downhill mountain biker from Morongo Valley, California. He is a five-time World Cup overall champion.

Race career
Aaron Gwin started his cycling career racing BMX from the age of 4. By age 8, Gwin was racing at a national level. At age 12, Gwin moved on to motocross and raced up until he was 17, when he quit due to constant injuries. In 2008, at age 20, Gwin was loaned a bike by fellow professional downhill racer and good friend Cody Warren and was encouraged to compete in a race. In his first race in the Fontana Winter Series, he placed 3rd, and began racing from then on, quickly signing with Yeti Cycles. He became well-known for breaking into the international World Cup scene after only 8 months of riding downhill.

Many saw Gwin as the savior for US downhill racing on the international scene, since his 10th-place finish at the Mont Sainte-Anne World Cup in 2008 was the first American top 10 finish since 2004. He has since won eight United States National Championships for Downhill, in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017.

In 2011 and 2012, Gwin dominated the UCI World Cup downhill series. Gwin won 5 out of 7 World Cup races in 2011, and finished 13th at the UCI World Championships in Champery. In 2012, Gwin once again dominated the circuit, taking first place in 4 out of 6 World Cup races. He finished in 128th at World Championships in Leogang.

The year 2013 was a disappointing one for Gwin, with unexpected poor results culminating in an accident involving a tree at the World Championships.

In 2014, Gwin's racing improved from 2013, although with only one 1st in the World Cup along with the USA National Championships. His racing showed recovery from his 2013 setbacks, but suffered several mechanical accidents, such as his run in Leogang at the UCI MTB World Cup in 2014, where he suffered a flat tire as he left the start gate, which resulted in the tire coming off of the rim; or his 2015 race run at the Leogang UCI MTB World Cup where his chain broke on the start line, and he raced without pedaling for his race run, managing to hold his speed and win the race.

Riding style
Much of Gwin's style and skill come from his motocross experience. His BMX racing experience has also contributed to his ability to ride smoothly, bringing him success in Dual Slalom and Mountain Cross.

Teams
Gwin was sponsored in 2008 by Yeti Cycles. He left the Yeti team in November 2010 to join the Trek World Racing Team after relocating to Temecula, CA. During his time at Trek World Racing, he won two World Cup Overall titles, in 2011 and 2012. On January 7, 2013, it was announced that Aaron would be riding for Specialized Racing, replacing Sam Hill on the team. His teammate at Specialized was Troy Brosnan. After a successful season with Specialized, Gwin announced that he would be leaving the big brand to ride for up and coming brand YT Industries for the 2016 season. In 2019, Gwin signed with Intense Factory Racing. In 2024, Gwin left Intense Factory Racing and formed an independent team, Gwin Factory Racing.

Results

 * 2008
 * 10th place, Sea Otter Classic Downhill
 * 7th place, MSC #2 Chalk Creek Stampede Mountain Cross
 * 1st place, MSC #2 Chalk Creek Stampede Dual Slalom
 * 4th place, Deer Valley National Dual Slalom
 * 4th place, Deer Valley National Downhill
 * 1st place, MSC #5 Blast the Mass Downhill
 * 10th place, 2008 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Mont Sainte-Anne, Quebec Canada
 * 34th place, 2008 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Bromont, Quebec, Canada
 * 1st place, MSC #7 Snowmass G3 Downhill
 * 1st place, MSC #9 MSC Gravity Finals Downhill
 * 8th place, 2008 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #8 Schladming, Austria


 * 2009
 * 17th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
 * 14th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 La Bresse France
 * 16th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Vallnord Andorra
 * 9th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Fort William, Scotland
 * 14th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Maribor Slovenia
 * 1st place, USAC National Downhill Championships, Sol Vista Colorado United States
 * 3rd place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Mont Sainte-Anne, Quebec, Canada
 * 5th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Bromont, Quebec, Canada
 * 1st place, MSC #3 Blast the Mass Downhill, Snowmass Village, Colorado, United States
 * 21st place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships Stromlo, Canberra, Australia
 * 4th place, 2009 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #8 Schladming, Austria


 * 2010
 * 2nd place, Sea Otter Classic Downhill
 * 7th place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Maribor, Slovenia
 * 1st place, IXS German Cup, Winterberg, Germany
 * 4th place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Fort William, Scotland
 * 3rd place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Leogang, Austria
 * 24th place, MSC #3 Blast the Mass Downhill, Snowmass Village, Colorado, United States
 * 1st place, MSC #4 Blast the Mass Downhill, Snowmass Village, Colorado, United States
 * 1st place, USAC National Downhill Championships, Sol Vista Colorado United States
 * 8th place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Champerey, [France]
 * 14th place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Val di Sole, [Italy]
 * 4th place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Windham, New York State, United States
 * 4th place, 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships Mont Sainte-Anne, Quebec, Canada


 * 2011
 * 1st place overall for the 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Series, the first American to ever win a World Cup Overall Title and the first man to win 5 World Cup DH races in one season:
 * 1st place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
 * 5th place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Fort William, Scotland
 * 1st place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Leogang, Austria
 * 1st place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Mont Sainte-Anne, Quebec
 * 1st place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Windham, New York, USA
 * 3rd place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 La Bresse, FRA
 * 1st place, 2011 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Val di Sole, ITA
 * 1st place, US Open


 * 2012
 * 1st place overall for the 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Series
 * 2nd place, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
 * 3rd place, Sea Otter Classic Downhill
 * 2nd place, Port Angeles Grand Prix Downhill
 * 1st place, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Val Di Sole, Italy
 * 1st place, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Fort William, Scotland
 * 1st place, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Mont Saint Anne, Canada
 * 1st place, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Windham, United States
 * 5th place, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Val D'Isere, France (After this race he clinched his 2nd UCI Mountain Bike World Cup championship)
 * 83rd place, Leogang, UCI MTB World Championships 2012 Austria
 * DNF, 2012 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Hafjell Bike Park, Norway


 * 2013
 * 1st place, Sea Otter Classic Downhill Monterey, California, United States
 * 20th place, 2013 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Fort William,
 * 6th place, 2013 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Val di Sole, [Italy]
 * 10th place, 2013 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Vallnord Andorra
 * 1st place, USAC National Downhill Pro Championships, Angel Fire New Mexico United States
 * 5th place, 2013 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Mont Saint Anne, Canada
 * 67th place, UCI MTB World Championships 2013 Pietermaritzburg, South Africa


 * 2014
 * 1st place, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
 * 4th place, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Cairns, Australia
 * 4th place, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Fort William,
 * 78thplace, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Leogang, Austria
 * 1st place, USAC National Downhill Pro Championships, Angel Fire New Mexico United States
 * 6th place, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Mont Saint-Anne, Canada
 * 2nd place, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Windham, New York State, United States
 * 6th place, 2014 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Meribel, France
 * 14th place, UCI MTB World Championships 2014 Hafjell Bike Park, Norway


 * 2015
 * 1st place overall for the 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Series
 * 1st place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Lourdes, France
 * 1st place, Sea Otter Classic Downhill Monterey, California, United States
 * 2nd place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Fort William,
 * 1st place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Leogang, Austria
 * 8th place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Lenzerheide switzerland
 * 1st place, USAC National Downhill Pro Championships, Mammouth California United States
 * 7th place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Mont Saint-Anne, Canada
 * 1st place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Windham, New York State, United States
 * 1st place, 2015 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Val di Sole, [Italy]


 * 2016
 * 1st place, Overall for the 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup
 * 1st place, 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Lourdes, France
 * 4th place, 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Cairns, Australia
 * 2nd place, 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Fort William, Scotland
 * 1st place, 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Leogang, Austria
 * 2nd place, 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Mont Sainte-Anne, Quebec
 * 1st place, MaillotUSA.PNG National Mountain Bike Championships - Downhill
 * 55th place, 2016 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Vallnord, Andorra


 * 2017
 * 1st place overall for the 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Series
 * DQ, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #1 Lourdes, France
 * 3rd place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #2 Fort William,
 * 1st place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #3 Leogang, Austria,
 * 5th place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #4 Vallnord Andorra,
 * 51st place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #5 Lenzerheide switzerland,
 * 1st place, 2017 USAC National Downhill Pro Championships Snowshoe West Virginia United States
 * 1st place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #6 Mont Saint Anne, Canada
 * 1st place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup #7 Val di Sole, [Italy]
 * 3rd place, 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships Cairns, [Australia]


 * 2018
 * 1st place, Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike Downhill World Cup Lošinj 2018