Segment Updates: Verified Segments, Decluttering and Leaderboard FAQ’s

We’re renewing our commitment to keeping Segments clean by decluttering duplicate and unused Segments, adding verified Segments and introducing new rules on Segment leaderboards. With these changes, you can more easily find and compete in the places that your community is actually running, riding and moving.

📂 Segment Decluttering

We’re combing through our Segment database, deleting any duplicate and unused Segments with bad GPS data. That way you can find the Segments you care about faster.

FAQs

How many duplicate Segments are there? 

There are 610,000 duplicate Segments around the world that we will remove. Going forward, we’ll do more to prevent new duplicate Segments from being created so the feature can remain clutter-free.

I created a goal on a Segment or starred a Segment which that be a duplicate. Will you delete my goal or remove my star? 

Your stars and goals will remain. When we remove Segments we’ll only delete duplicates. We’ll identify one Segment to keep and move goals and stars from any duplicates to the remaining Segment. You won’t lose any functionality related to your Segments if they are identified as duplicates. 

What happens if I have a goal or a star on a Segment that Strava has determined to have “bad GPS data?” 

If you starred a Segment that Strava makes private, the live Segment functionality will go away. We are doing our best to not make Segments that have been starred private. 

Strava is not making Segments that have active goals private unless those Segments have GPS data that won’t allow us to maintain an accurate leaderboard. We’ll prioritize keeping good Segments that the community is using. If you find a Segment you were using has been deleted, you can always create a new one.

If I have an achievement like a CR or a Top 10 on a deleted Segment, will you delete my achievement? 

If you have an achievement on a Segment that has been labeled a duplicate, you should also have a matching achievement on the Segment that will be kept. We have selected duplicate Segments with the goal of preserving your achievements.

If you have an achievement on a Segment that we have determined is irrelevant or has poor GPS data, you may lose that achievement. We want to be sure Segments are fair to compete on, so we need to remove certain Segments with poor data which affect the results. This will only affect a few hundred thousand Segments around the world. 

How can I find new Segments to compete on? 

Mobile: Select the Maps tab and tap the Map Features selector in the top left-hand corner (this should be auto-selected to “Routes”). From there you will be able to select “Segments” and have your map populate with popular Segments in the map area you’re viewing.

Web: Go to https://www.strava.com/maps, click the “Segments” button, and select any filters you’d like to apply to your search. Your map will populate with popular Segments in the map area you’re viewing.

Pro tip: Change your activity type to see Segments specific to your sport type! On web, you’ll be able to see Segments for all GPS-based sports (Canoe CR 👑, anyone?).

✅ Verified Segments 

The most iconic and popular Segments will now have a badge to signify that the distance and elevation stats have been verified, and that Strava (and the community) recognize that section of road or trail as an “official” Segment. So you can know that when you’re going for the KOM on Hawk Hill it’s THE Hawk Hill. 

FAQ’s

How do we pick Segments to verify? 

Strava verifies its most popular Segments as measured by users viewing the leaderboard, user attempts, user stars, and user goals.

We also verify Segments which are famous proving grounds for professional athletes and passionate fans of the sport, think Alpe D’Huez in France or Belisario-Patios in Colombia. 

How do I get my favorite Segment verified? 

We will frequently add Segments to our verified list. If you believe a Segment is worthy of verification, star it! Segments with the most stars go to the top of the list! 

How many verified Segments are there?

Currently, there are about 500 verified Segments around the world. 

🧹 Leaderboard Cleanup 

With the introduction of an upgraded auto-flagging system, you can now expect to see 33% fewer impossible efforts on cycling leaderboards. We know 33% isn’t 100%, but it will mean many millions of illegitimate efforts will be removed from leaderboards! 

We’ve implemented this system on Segments in the past, but this time the auto-detection will also be gradually applied to older activities. This way, we’ll be able to remove past impossible efforts from leaderboards. So in the coming weeks, you may see yourself move up the leaderboards – congrats!

FAQs

Why do I still see incorrect efforts on my favorite leaderboard?

There are billions of activities that need to be checked to catch all the illegitimate ones, so this is going to take a while. We appreciate your patience.

What can I do today if I find an illegitimate effort? 

 If you see an activity that is inaccurate, you can always flag the activity by viewing it on the desktop. Read more about how to report cheating on Strava here. 

Why can Strava only catch 33% of illegitimate segments and not 100%?

It takes a nuanced approach to automatically differentiate between an e-bike ride, a slow-moving car, or a human-powered ride and we’re working toward perfecting that process.