INTERVIEW PHOTO BY PAUL WILES


Si Paton on the Malverns Classic


BikeBiz talks to Si Paton about the Malverns, from taking on the event, growth and plans for the future.


The Malverns Classic holds a legendary status in UK mountain biking. Could you take us through the story of bringing the festival to life? It all started with my time running British Cycling’s National Downhill Series from 2007 to 2018. For eleven years, that role became the foundation of everything that followed. That journey came to an abrupt halt when British Cycling secured HSBC as an exclusive title sponsor. As part of that agreement, I was no longer able to bring in any independent sponsorship as the series organiser. It meant long-standing partners like GT Bicycles who we had a contract with, couldn’t continue even as a presenting sponsor.


24 | August 2026 Left: Si Paton


With a year remaining on that deal, I went back to Clive Gosling, GT’s Marketing Director at the time. I was ready to step away and even asked him about potential sales roles within the company. Instead, he threw me a curveball: “Why don’t you put on a mountain bike festival?” More than that, he backed it. Clive offered to transfer the remaining sponsorship funds from the National Downhill Series contract directly into what would become the


Malverns Classic start-up fund. At that moment, what felt like the end of one


chapter became the beginning of something much bigger. www.bikebiz.com


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