Schurter is the defending champion, having won silver at London 2012 and bronze at the Beijing 2008 Olympics.

He currently shares the record with Germany’s Sabine Spitz, who also has a complete set of Olympic mountain bike medals having won silver at the Athens 2004 Games, gold at the Beijing 2008 Games and silver at London 2012.

Schurter has claimed five of the last six world titles in this event, although he only finished ninth at the last, in Leogang, Austria last year.

His two closest rivals would appear to be Matthieu van der Poel of The Netherlands and Britain’s Thomas Pidcock.

Van der Poel will be hoping to match the achievement of the only Dutch cyclist to have won the Olympic mountain bike title, Bart Brentjens, who was victorious at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

He has already had a momentous year in the saddle, having successfully defended his world cyclo-cross title, winning for the fourth time, and more recently making a hugely promising first appearance in his first grand tour – no less than the Tour de France – where he won the second stage and wore the yellow jersey for six days.

His father, Adrie van der Poel, competed at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, where he finished seventh in the men's cycling road race and 15th in the men's 100 kilometres team time trial.

If Pidcock wins, he will be, at 21, the youngest Olympic mountain bike champion – that distinction is currently held by Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds, who was 22 years and 75 days old when she won in Rio.

Pidcock is also in the running to become the first mountain bike rider representing Britain to claim an Olympic medal in this sport - the best previous result was Liam Killeen’s fifth place in 2004.

The British rider also moved into the world of grand tour racing this year, signing up for Ineos Grenadiers.

At the second round of the 2021 Mountain Bike World Cup in Nove Mesto in May, he won with a margin of victory over van der Poel of a full minute.

Pidcock’s momentum was halted soon afterwards when he broke his collarbone in a training crash, but he was able to return to training just over a week later.

Other contenders for the title include France’s Jordan Sarrou, who won the world title last year, Schurter’s compatriot Mathias Flueckiger, who earned a place on the podium in the opening four World Cup events this year, and Brazil’s Henrique Avancini.

In the women’s race, due to take place on Tuesday, world champion Pauline Ferrand Prevot of France will be among the favourites along with Sweden’s defending champion Rissveds.