The Bike Festival Award 2026 initiative is established and promoted by Garda Dolomiti S.p.A. on the occasion of its event Bike Festival Riva del Garda, scheduled from 1 to 3 May 2026, with the aim of enhancing products and innovations in the off-road cycling sector.
1. ORGANIZER
Garda Dolomiti S.p.A., based in Riva del Garda, establishes, organises and promotes the Bike Festival Award 2026.
2. OBJECT
The Bike Festival Award 2026 is an international award open to companies operating in the off-road cycling sector (mountain bike and gravel).
Its aim is to recognise the best products and innovations available on the market in 2026.
The Award includes six categories:
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MTB Bicycles
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E-MTB Bicycles
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GRAVEL Bicycles
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Innovation Award (product)
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Sustainability Award – environmental, social or economic (initiative)
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Start-up Award (company)
3. PARTICIPANTS
The Bike Festival Award 2026 is open to corporations, partnerships, sole proprietorships and start-ups.
Participation is free of charge and reserved exclusively for exhibitors of Bike Festival Riva del Garda 2026.
All participating companies shall have the right to use the name Bike Festival Award and the wording “Finalist and/or Winner of the Bike Festival Award” (referring exclusively to the 2026 edition) in their communication materials addressed to the public, trade and press.
4. TERMS OF PARTICIPATION
The Jury, composed of professionals with proven experience in the fields of cycling and sustainability, shall carry out its evaluations with full autonomy.
For each of the six categories, three finalist entries will be selected, among which one winner per category will be chosen.
Each company may submit only one application per category.
Products under embargo may be submitted, provided that the embargo expires by 1 May 2026, the date on which the winners will be announced.
Bicycles submitted in previous editions of the Bike Festival Award may also be entered.
Companies may submit only products included in their official catalogue. Prototypes not yet launched on the market are not eligible.
The winners will be announced on the opening day of Bike Festival Riva del Garda 2026.
By submitting an application, companies agree and undertake to send the submitted product to the Bike Festival Riva del Garda organisation, should it be selected as one of the three finalists in its category.
Companies selected for the final evaluation phase must send the products in the size requested by the organisation. Shipping costs shall be borne by the participating companies.
5. EVALUATION CRITERIA
The Jury will evaluate applications according to the following criteria, depending on the category:
MTB, E-MTB and GRAVEL Bicycles
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Overall technical content
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Appearance and design
Innovation Award (product)
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Technological innovation and improvement of an existing product, open to all product categories exhibited at Bike Festival 2026
Sustainability Award (company)
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Quantitative data generated by an initiative that has produced a positive environmental, social or economic impact
Start-up Award (on the market for a maximum of 2 years)
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Achieved objectives
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Technological innovation of the idea
In addition, the communication strategy adopted by the company to promote the product or initiative will also be considered to a lesser extent.
The Jury will use a scoring scale from 1 to 10, where 10 represents the highest score.
The final decision of the Bike Festival Award 2026 Jury shall be final and not subject to appeal.
This Award is not considered a “prize competition”.
6. TIMELINE
The Bike Festival Award 2026 will follow the schedule below:
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26 January 2026: opening of applications on www.bikefestivalriva.com
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1 March 2026: closing of applications
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24 March 2026: notification of products and companies admitted to the final evaluation phase
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31 March 2026: public announcement (media and social) of finalist products
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24 April 2026: deadline for delivery of finalist products to Riva del Garda for Jury evaluation
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28–30 April 2026: Jury meeting
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1 May 2026: award ceremony for the winners of the Bike Festival Award 2026
Bike Festival Award 2026_Regola…
In the event of withdrawal from the Award or inability to send the selected product within the indicated deadlines, the company must promptly notify the Bike Festival organisation. In such cases, the next candidate in the ranking order will be admitted.
The list of finalists and winners will be published on www.bikefestivalriva.com.
7. PRIZES
The Bike Festival Riva del Garda organisation will award the first-ranked company in each category with a two-day/one-night stay for two people at a hotel within the Garda Dolomiti – Azienda per il Turismo S.p.A. area.
Winners in all six categories will receive a trophy, which will be presented on 1 May 2026, the opening day of Bike Festival Riva del Garda 2026, on the main stage of the Expo Area.
8. PUBLICATION OF ENTRIES AND WINNERS
By registering for the Bike Festival Award 2026, participating companies grant the organisation the right to use their logo, images and videos of the submitted product.
They also grant the free use of the submitted materials and information across all media channels (press, radio, TV, web and social media) and communication materials.
Participating companies authorise Bike Festival Riva del Garda to reproduce photographic images and videos related to the application.
Companies with finalist products may freely communicate their participation and any eventual victory in the Bike Festival Award 2026 through their own communication channels.
9. ELIGIBLE BICYCLES
The submission of false information during the data collection phase or failure to comply with the participation procedures set out in these Regulations shall result in exclusion from the Bike Festival Award or revocation of the Award.
Any exclusion during the verification phase shall not give rise to any rights in favour of the excluded applicant.
10. ACCEPTANCE OF THE REGULATIONS
Participation in the Bike Festival Award 2026 implies full acceptance of these Regulations.
Garda Dolomiti S.p.A., as organiser of the Award, reserves the right to amend these Regulations if deemed necessary or appropriate, at its sole discretion.
Applicants to the Bike Festival Award 2026 must comply with all applicable regulations governing employment, including social security and welfare obligations.
11. PRIVACY
In accordance with Italian Legislative Decree No. 196 of 30 June 2003, Garda Dolomiti S.p.A., as Data Controller, informs that all data required by this call and by the application procedure for the Bike Festival Award will be processed exclusively within the scope of activities related to Bike Festival Riva del Garda 2026.
