Legendary mountain bike rider Sam Pilgrim signs for Canyon

New Canyon rider Sam Pilgrim poses with 2 of his new mountain bikes
(Image credit: Canyon)

Sam Pilgrim is one of the most recognizable figures on the international mountain bike freeride scene thanks to his passion and a long list of accomplishments in the sport.  Starting in 2023, he'll be riding for Canyon, and as someone who can ride just about any bike, anywhere, anytime, Sam will be repping most of the Canyon mountain bike range. 

At only 32, Sam has been riding competitively for more than 20 years and has amassed over 1.8 million subscribers on his wildly popular YouTube channel, where he prolifically updates his content with his new videos every two weeks.

Sam Pilgrim riding his mountain bike in a tunnel

Sam is excited to create new content on the Canyon mountain bike range (Image credit: Canyon)

Sam started his channel in 2015, having shifted his attention to content creation and it has quickly become one of the main outlets in the MTB industry. His challenges, journeys, and adventures are seen as a benchmark and a source of inspiration by a vast number of riders all over the world. Sam continues to work toward achieving his personal goal of achieving one podium finish per year despite the demands of running a hugely famous YouTube channel.

Before switching to content creation as his main focus, Sam earned his stripes by racing at the top levels of slopestyle, freeride, and dirt jumping. At the age of 17, his triumph in Austria's King of Dirt championship launched him onto the world stage. In 2013, he won the FMB World Tour Champion title. He followed up with podiums at Crankworx, Dirtmasters, Red Bull Joyride, and the FISE festival, with his popularity continuing to grow as a result of his notable appearances at the X-Games and Red Bull Rampage.

Sam Pilgrim with two Canyon mountain bikes

Sam is stoked to join the Canyon roster (Image credit: Canyon)

In his typically enthusiastic way, Sam talked about his move to Canyon "2023 with Canyon is gonna be epic. It’s a dream come true. I'll be riding the best bikes alongside the sickest team which means loads of amazing times, and a bunch of sick videos coming your way, I’ll be hitting a few contests over the year, and loving every minute of it." adding "I can't wait to try out the Canyon mountain bike range, their 'Category 5' abuse rating on the Stitched 720 and 360 are perfect for me! For trail riding, I'll be using the Spectral and Stoic models, and big mountain days the Torque. I'm stoked about trying the e-MTBs too, the Spectral:ON and Torque:ON look epic!"

side on view of the Canyon stitched 720 in purple

The Canyon Stitched 720 (Image credit: Canyon)

Sam’s first project with Canyon is planned for February 2023 with a video expected in the spring and you can check out some of his previous YouTube shorts below.

Paul Brett
Staff writer

Based in Edinburgh, Paul Brett is a staff writer for BikePerfect.com. He has been an avid cyclist for as long as he can remember, initially catching the mountain biking bug in the 1990s, and raced mountain bikes for over a decade before injury cut short a glittering career. He’s since developed an obsession for gravel riding and recently has dabbled in the dark art of cyclocross. A fan of the idea of bikepacking he has occasionally got involved and has ridden routes like the North Coast 500, Scotland and the Via Francigena (Pilgrim Route), Italy.


Current rides: Marin Alpine Trail 2, Ribble 725, Cube Stereo 160

Height: 175cm