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Flat tyre deflates Kiwi downhill chances at UCI MTB World Championships

The fine weather led to some extraordinarily daring performances in the elite downhill finals that the New Zealand riders could not quite match at the UCI MTB World Championships in Champéry, Switzerland.Austria’s Valentina Holl made it four titles in a row in the elite women while the ultra-talented 21-year-old Canadian, Jackson Goldstone rode with daring to claim his first elite men’s crown.The dry conditions enabled riders to hurtle down the rutted and iconic course on the absolute edge ...

Medals for kiwi downhill MTB pair in world championship finals

2025 UCI MTB WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 5Tauranga’s Eliana Hulsebosch and Hawkes Bay rider Tyler Waite both won silver medals in the junior downhill finals on day five of the UCI MTB World Championships in Switzerland.The pair of 18-year-olds both overcame a slippery and challenging downhill track to earn podium placings on Champéry today.Hulsebosch, second fastest qualifier, pushed hard in her run down the testing 1.72km track, which started at 1650m and twisted its way down a 560m decent throu...

Seven kiwi MTB riders through to junior gravity finals

2025 UCI MTB WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 4 Seven New Zealand junior riders have qualified for tomorrow’s final in downhill in Champéry on day four of the UCI MTB World Championships in Switzerland.In-form Tauranga professional Eliana Hulsebosch was second fastest in qualifying for junior women, just 2.5s behind leader Rosa Zierl (AUT). She is joined by Rotorua’s Bellah Birchall (Team High Country) who recovered sufficiently from injury to qualify 18th fastest.Palmerston North rider Jo...

Champéry course conjures up daunting downhill test

2025 UCI MTB WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 3 PREVIEWGravity riders are set for one of the toughest tests of skill and daring at the UCI MTB World Championships when the downhill racing begins tomorrow in Switzerland.Riders face the renowned testing terrain of the downhill track in Champéry, near Valais on the border with France.The infamous downhill track for the world championships is known for its extremely demanding technical features, made more challenging with new lines and the prospect of some ...

CNZ acknowledges immense contribution by Steve Stannard

Cycling New Zealand acknowledges Steve Stannard’s immense and passionate contribution to cycling at all levels and offers heartfelt sympathy to Steve’s family and friends on his recent passing.Cycling New Zealand recognises the significant contribution to the sport by Steve, who passed away recently after a lengthy battle with cancer.A professor, Steve moved to New Zealand to establish the school of sport and exercise science at Massey University over 20 years ago. He was a passionate and su...

Nelson enduro rider new UCI World Champion

2025 UCI MTB WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 2 WRAPNelson rider George Swift set the New Zealand team abuzz, becoming the elite women’s E-Enduro World Champion in the first event of the 2025 UCI MTB World Championships in Switzerland today.With impending inclement weather, organisers rejigged the competition with a major stage completed yesterday, and the competition completed today in the mountains of Valise near the Italian border.The 27-year-old Yeti-Fox Factory Team rider was 1.91s down on leader ...

Maxwell grabs seventh straight podium in UCI MTB World Series

Taupo’s Sammie Maxwell worked hard for an important podium placing to maintain her overall lead after round seven of the UCI MTB cross-country world series in France.The Decathlon Ford professional finished third behind Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds and Swiss star Alessandra Keller at Les Gets in the Haute Savoie region.It was the seventh straight podium finish for Maxwell comprising two wins, three second-placings and two third-placings. Her lead is now 435 points clear of Rissveds in the overall...

Kiwi Para-cyclists wrap-up positive road world campaign

Paris medallist Nicole Murray wrapped up the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships with a fourth placing in the road race in Belgium today.On an uncompromising road circuit, the Waikato rider was among a four-strong group that pushed off the front in the women’s C5 road race over five laps, 77kms in Ronse.Murray was with the group for much of the race, but gradually the stronger riders eased up the road with Australia’s Alana Forster claiming the gold medal in 2:08.04. She finished 38 se...

Kiwi enduro riders make early campaign start

2025 UCI MTB WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 1 WRAPThe kiwi enduro riders got the New Zealand campaign underway in the 2025 UCI MTB World Championships in Switzerland today.The two-week campaign is based in and around Valise in Switzerland, near the Italian border, for the championships comprising several MTB disciplines including downhill, enduro, cross-country, marathon and pump.With severe weather forecast for the region, as witnessed at the MTB World Cup in near-by Les Gets in France at the weekend,...

New Zealand Para-cyclist improves but wants more

US-based kiwi hand-cyclist, Rory Mead finished in a solo fourth placing in the men’s H2 road race at the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships in Ronse, Belgium today.The result mirrors his fourth-placed performance in the time trial earlier in the championships, finishing 8:58 down on the podium trio led by Paris Paralympic gold medallist Florian Jouanny. He cleared out to win from defending champion Garrote Munoz (ESP) and Luca Massone (ITA).While Mead has upped his training regime and m...

Waite leads way for kiwi MTB gravity riders in mud in France

New Zealand mountain bikers faced a sodden and muddy course for downhill finals at the UCI MTB World Cup in Les Gets, France.Like many, the kiwi gravity riders did not fare well on the treacherous track, especially the junior riders earlier on the day, forced to cope with low visibility and mud.Best was Hawkes Bay teenager Tyler Waite, who finished third in the junior men’s final. The Yeti-Fox Factory rider set the benchmark, off early in the final after struggling yesterday in qualifying.His ...

Podium delights Murray in UCI World Para-cycling time trial

Waikato’s Nicole Murray manoeuvred her way over wet roads and cobbles to claim the bronze medal in the women’s C5 time trial on day two of the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships in Belgium.The Paris Olympic track medallist finished the 23.2km time trial over a wet course in Ronse just over two minutes behind Australian winner Alana Forster and only 14 seconds behind second placed Mogan Newberry (GBR).It was Murray’s first road world championship medal in three years, averaging 42kph...

Kiwi mountain bikers stand out in brutal World Series test

New Zealand mountain bikers faced tough conditions on the first day of competition at the penultimate European rounds of the UCI MTB World Cup in Les Gets, France.The rain earlier in the seek eased but added to a brutal course for downhill qualifying and a slippery surface for short track cross-country riders at the resort town in the Haute Savoie region.The kiwi gravity riders showed their fortitude in the demanding conditions with 10 riders through to tomorrow’s grand finals.Leading the way ...

Mead closes on podium in UCI World Para-cycling time trial

US-based kiwi Paralympian Rory Mead has finished fourth in the men’s H2 (handcycle) time trial on the opening day of the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships in Belgium.Early morning rain cleared to fine conditions for the 11.6km test against the clock in Ronse, a city in East Flanders in the heart of the Flemish cycling scene.Mead produced a well-structured race, going through the 6km time check in 9:57, 52s down on winner Jouanny Florian (FRA), who won his third individual world title a...

Murray helps build growing kiwi mountain bike legacy

Canterbury structural engineer Charlie Murray is building an impressive career in Enduro MTB after finishing third for a second straight year in the UCI World Series rankings.The 29-year-old Specialized Gravity rider completed another UCI Enduro World Series by digging deep in the final round at the weekend.“I am absolutely stoked how it went. I knew second place was within reach but after a tough crash on the first day, I knew I had to put myself in the best place in case something happened t...

Kiwi riders resume chase for UCI MTB World Series honours

The UCI Mountain Bike World Series is back in action following the summer break in Europe with no time for Kiwi riders to ease their way back into the competition scene.There are just three rounds of the UCI MTB World Series remaining, with this weekend’s eighth round set for the famed stop of Les Gets in the Haute Savoie region.This round for downhill and cross-country leads on to the UCI MTB World Championships in Switzerland starting next week, comprising cross-country, downhill, enduro, ma...

Kiwi Para-cyclists target return to UCI World Championships

The New Zealand pair of Nicole Murray and Rory Mead return to international competition for the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships in Belgium this weekend.A year on from the Paris Paralympics, the pair will take their first pedal strokes towards the 2028 Los Angeles Games when they compete in the time trial and road races in Ronse, Belgium.Mead, the 37-year-old hand-cyclist, is excited to get back into international racing. He has made significant change to his training regime after what ...

Shuler impresses in world championship campaign

Waikato rider Alex Schuler signed off on an excellent campaign with a strong performance on the final day of the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships in the Netherlands.Schuler, just pipped for a medal in the keirin, finished eighth in the 1000m individual time trial at the Apeldoorn Velodrome.The Cambridge rider was fifth fastest in qualifying in an impressive 1:02.924. While Schuler could not improve on this in the final, it rounded off a strong campaign.Dunedin’s Joshua Grieve had a...

Double World Cup podium success for kiwi MTB Enduro riders

Kiwi mountain bike star, Charles Murray has claimed his second straight championship podium placing after the final round of the UCI MTB Enduro World Series.The Specialized Gravity rider from Christchurch had to dig deep on the second day of the final round  that comprised nine stages with a combined elevation of nearly 5,000m along with 80kms of liaison riding between stages.Enduro is the mountain bike equivalent of motor rally, with timed runs over special downhill sections and lengthy ri...

Cycling New Zealand joins with Crankworx for major MTB events

Cycling New Zealand is linking with the international Crankworx Rotorua Festival for the staging of key mountain bike championship events this summer.With increased felling operations limiting access to the competition forest trails in Rotorua this summer, the two organisations have forged a closer relationship.It will see the Cycling New Zealand MTB National Downhill Championships staged at Skyline Rotorua, Mt Ngongotaha, during the Crankworx Rotorua festival window of 11–15 March, with the p...

Cambridge rider pipped for sprint medal at UCI Junior Track Worlds

Cambridge teenager Alex Schuler came close to earning the first male individual sprint medal for nearly a decade on the penultimate day of competition at the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships in the Netherlands.Schuler was edged by less than half a second in both rides in the best-of-three contest for the bronze medal after an outstanding performance at the Apeldoorn Velodrome.A New Zealand male last won an individual sprint world championship medal in 2016, when Southland’s Bradly ...

Positive performances from New Zealand track cyclists

It proved a positive and busy session for New Zealand riders on day three of the UCI Junior Track World Championships in the Netherlands today.Kiwi riders qualified and contested three finals with some excellent performances at the Apeldoorn Velodrome.Cambridge sprinter Alex Schuler impressed to force his way through to tomorrow’s quarterfinals in the individual sprint.Schuler and Hamilton’s Flynn Underwood both qualified in 10.404s and 10.703s respectively in the 200m sprint qualifying.Unde...

Podiums up for grabs and fond farewell for kiwi mtb enduro riders

Two New Zealand enduro riders will look to secure championship podium placings in the final round of the UCI MTB World Cup series in Morillon, France over the weekend.Charlie Murray (Specialized Gravity) is currently in second place in the elite men, while Alexandra’s Cooper Millwood (Yeti Development NZ) is second in the junior men going into the two-day finale for enduro.It is part of 10 days of UCI MTB World Series action in the Haute Savoie region in the alps of eastern France.While the en...

Sprint trio impress at UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships

Cycling New Zealand men’s team sprint were pipped for a medal, settling for fourth in an impressive effort on the opening day of the 2025 UCI Junior Track World Championships in the Netherlands.The Team Sprint trio of Ben Murphy (Cambridge), Alex Schuler (Cambridge) and Flynn Underwood (Hamilton) went under the previous national record twice in an exhausting opening day of competition.They were pipped for a medal by Germany in the ride off for bronze medal in their third ride of the day at the...

Kiwi cycling trio on start line for final Grand Tour of 2025

The experienced George Bennett will join fellow Nelsonian Finn Fisher-Black and Dion Smith to fly the kiwi flag in the final Grand Tour of 2025, the Vuelta a España.The trio will be on the start line in Turin, Italy at the weekend for the first stage with the Vuelta finishing in Madrid on September 14.Bennett (Israel Premier Tech) achieves his eighth start in the Vuelta a España, the most by any New Zealand rider, and his 16th Grand Tour overall which is second among all kiwis behind the ...