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Stevens-McNab leads charge as junior finals cancelled in UCI MTB World Cup

New Zealand downhillers continued to impress with 12 riders qualifying for finals in the sixth round of the UCI MTB World Series in Andorra.However after moving qualifying runs earlier in the day to avoid predicted wet weather, with updated worsening weather information, organisers have decided to cancel finals for junior riders and will proceed with elite only.Rotorua’s Lachlan Stevens-McNab (Trek Factory) was in outstanding form, rushing down the 2.1km course fo...

Five riders selected for UCI Road World Championships in Africa

Cycling New Zealand has confirmed the selection of five riders for the 2025 UCI Road World Championships to be staged in Rwanda in September.It is the first time the championships have been staged in Africa with several federations expected to have limited participation with associated high costs, logistical complexity and security considerations.There are three World Tour elite women named, in the Paris Olympic Games pair of Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek) and Kim Cadzow (EF Education-Oatly), al...

UCI MTB World Series on-the-up for New Zealand downhill riders

Kiwi mountain bikers will be go to new heights to build on their recent outstanding form in the latest round of the UCI MTB World Cup in Andorra this weekend.There are 10 New Zealand gravity riders in the top-12 on the current world rankings across elite and junior categories going into the sixth round of downhill. Meanwhile current world-ranked No 1 in women’s cross-country, Sammie Maxwell, will look to extend her advantage in her rookie year in the elite competition.Riders will battle at hig...

Petch to combine motherhood with Olympic cycling dream

If the stars align, kiwi sprint cyclist Rebecca Petch will have a special new fan supporting her at the Los Angeles Olympic Games.Petch and husband Jarrod Browning, who were married two and a half years ago, are expecting their first child later this year.The Olympic silver medallist in the Team Sprint is planning a return to the track with her sights ultimately fixed on the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028.It would make three Olympic Games for Petch, with the multi-national champion in BMX qua...

Kiwi downhill MTB riders again outstanding in Italian Alps

New Zealand’s downhill mountain bike riders produced another beacon performance across all finals at the latest round of the UCI Whoop MTB World Series in La Thuile, nestled in the Italian Alps.Promising Hawkes Bay rider Tyler Waite (Yeti-Fox Factory) was third in the junior men’s final, and moves to second overall midway through the 10-round season.He was joined by fourth placings for elite Lachie Stevens-McNab (Trek Factory), his second of the season, and emerging talent Kate Hastings (Piv...

Cadzow, Harvey to fly kiwi flag in women’s cycling pinnacle tour

Paris Olympian Kim Cadzow and the experienced Mikayla Harvey lead the New Zealand charge when the premier women’s road cycling tour gets underway in Italy.The Giro d’Italia Women, established in 1988, sets off overnight from Bergamo in northern Italy with 22 seven-rider teams to contest a testing eight-stage tour.It is the second Grand Tour on the women’s calendar with an exciting route featuring three summit finishes, two sprint stages and a key time trial.  The final stage will...

Murray a blink away from UCI World Cup mountain bike enduro victory

Christchurch mountain biker Charles Murray has finished a blink away from victory in the penultimate round of the UCI MTB Enduro World Cup in Italy today.Murray (Specialized Gravity) was pipped by 0.05s for the overall honours after an exciting final stage, staged at night under lights for the first time, at La Thuile in the Alps near the Italy-France border.Seeking his second World Cup enduro victory after a breakthrough win in Bielsko-Biala in Poland last season, Murray had an advantage of jus...

Greenough trio named in 11-strong NZ team for UCI BMX Racing Worlds

An 11-strong team has been named by Cycling New Zealand to contest the 2025 UCI BMX Racing World Championships in Copenhagen.Organisers expect up to 7,000 to attend with the Championship Elite racing on 2-3 August, following the Challenge (age group) and Masters categories on 28-31 July, with more than 40 New Zealand riders taking part.It is the second time the world championships have been staged in Copenhagen with the track upgraded including new surfaces on straights and ramps, additional wor...

Young cyclist joins select group of kiwis to compete in Tour de France

Christchurch 22-year-old Laurence Pithie will become the 19th New Zealander to start in cycling’s iconic Tour de France which gets underway tomorrow in the northern city of Lille, in France.Pithie, who rides for the high profile Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team, is currently in his third year on the UCI World Tour.“It’s my first Tour de France and sure it is a little bit daunting but I am super-excited,” said Pithie.“I want take the opportunity with both hands. I have done all the pre...

Pivotal race for Enduro, new test for Downhill as UCI MTB heads to the Alps

Forty Kiwi mountain bikers head to the Alps on the Italy-France border in the shadow of Mont Blanc for a pivotal round of the Whoop UCI MTB World Cup for Enduro and Downhill riders.The latest stop in the UCI MTB World Cup is the stunning mountain village of La Thuile in the Aosta Valley where Enduro riders compete in the penultimate round with results vital to overall aspirations.The downhill competition reaches the midway point with several New Zealanders threatening podium standings, with doub...

Pithie ticks the boxes for his maiden Tour de France assignment

Christchurch professional cyclist Laurence Pithie will become the 19th kiwi rider to contest the famed Tour de France starting next week.Pithie, 22, is the only New Zealand rider in the 112th edition of the iconic annual sporting contest, which begins in Lille, in northern France on Monday and finishes 3,339kms over 21 stages later, on the Champs-Elysees in Paris.He rides for the much-vaunted Red Bull Bora Hansgrohe team, with...

Rotorua teenager, Nelson champion lead kiwi mtb enduro riders in Italy

Rotorua teenager, Joe Millington led the kiwi elite riders at the demanding two-day UCI MTB Enduro World Cup in Italy.The 19-year-old finished fifth in the highly competitive elite men’s field with more than 100 starters in the fifth round of the world series at Val di Fassa in the Dolomites of northern Italy.The Yeti NZ Development rider produced a strong performance on day two, with four top-10 stage finishes to move to fifth place overall, 39 seconds down on winner ...

Fortunes slip in rain for Kiwi BMX Racers at UCI World Cup in Papendal

The kiwi riders were without fortune in round four action at the UCI BMX Racing World Cup in Papendal, Netherlands today.After a win for Rico Bearman and medal for junior women’s rookie Lily Greenough in round three at the same venue yesterday, the kiwi contingent could not find a way to the podium on the fourth round.The conditions proved a challenge, with rain falling for the key medal rounds which proved the downfall for several New Zealand riders.After his overall elite men’s victory in ...

Maxwell retains lead after impressive comeback at Val di Sole

Kiwi mountain biker Sammie Maxwell produced an outstanding performance to finish runner-up in the latest round of the UCI MTB Cross-country World Series in Italy.The Decathlon Ford team professional, in her first season as an elite, retains her lead in the overall world series standings after the fifth of nine rounds at Val di Sole.After a win in the opening round, the 2023 under-23 world champion has finished second in the next four rounds, where she has ridden to her own pace, rather than gett...

Bearman scores first victory in UCI BMX Racing World Cup in Netherlands

Paris Olympian Rico Bearman has claimed his first UCI BMX Racing Elite World Cup title in Papendal, Netherlands today.It was the first elite men’s BMX Racing World Cup victory for a New Zealand rider since Marc Willers in 2011 in London.It capped a strong day for kiwi riders with Cambridge teenager Lily Greenough claiming her second successive podium in the under-23 women with third place in the final, following her third placing in Sarrians, France last weekend.Bearman won his first round, se...

Hastings leads young New Zealand downhill charge in Italy

Rotorua teenager Kate Hastings has earned a breakthrough podium in the latest round of the UCI MTB World Series Downhill in Italy today.The 17-year-old claimed third placing in the junior women’s final at the fourth round of the world cup on the infamous Black Snake downhill track at Val di Sole.Hastings, who won a European Downhill Cup race last weekend in Austria, is the younger sister of former junior downhill world champion and current Pivot Factory elite, Jenna Hastings.Qualifying second ...

Junior downhillers lead kiwis in UCI MTB World Series on dusty Val di Sole

A dry and dusty track made for testing times for kiwi gravity riders in qualifying at the fourth round of downhill in the UCI MTB World Series at Val di Sole in Italy.The conditions took their toll, with only two elite kiwi women and no men advancing to elite downhill finals on the famed Black Snake course.The kiwi juniors led the way in qualifying with Rotorua riders Kate Hastings and Bellah Birchall finishing second and third fastest to move through to tomorrow’s final. They will be joined i...

Kiwis set for UCI BMX Racing double header World Cup in Netherlands

Nine New Zealander riders are among the record 334 entrants for the UCI BMX Racing World Cup double round at the popular Dutch stronghold of Papendal.It is the 12th time the iconic venue near Arnhem and the German border has hosted the BMX Racing World Cup, which will provide a different test that last week’s opening two rounds at Sarrians in France.The Papendal track has a much longer and wide open first straight with tight corners and big jumps.The female pair of junior Lily Greenough a...

Kiwi mountain bikers chase more success at challenging Val di Sole

New Zealand mountain bikers will be looking to build on recent unprecedented success when the UCI Mtb World Series moves to the famed venue of Val di Sole in the mountains among the Dolomites in Trentino, northern Italy.The downhill and cross-country racing again join this weekend, after kiwi riders achieved a remarkable six podiums in Leogang, Austria, including a victory in the junior men to Oli Clark.This has been no one-off achievement for kiwi riders this year, with Olympian Samara Maxwell ...

Cambridge teenager earns first podium in UCI BMX Racing World Cup

Cambridge teenager Lily Greenough sped to her first podium at the second round of the UCI BMX Racing World Cup in Sarrians, France.The 17-year-old, who qualified for her first junior women’s final yesterday, improved on that to finish third in an excellent performance at the same venue today.Greenough was joined by fellow Cambridge rider Leila Walker as the only kiwis to make finals in the opening double round of the UCI BMX Racing World Cup.Walker, the Paris Olympian, was fifth in the elite w...

Cambridge females lead way in UCI BMX Racing World Cup opener

Cambridge females Lily Greenough and Olympian Leila Walker led the kiwis on the opening round of the UCI BMX Racing World Cup in Sarrians, France.Both kiwi riders from the Cambridge BMX Club rode strongly to make their respective finals in the sweltering conditions over 30C deg in the south of France.Walker, who has only recently returned to training after recovery from surgery on her foot from a training accident, enjoyed an encouraging start to her 2024 campaign.She used he...

Olympians lead New Zealand charge in UCI BMX Racing World Cup

Olympians Leila Walker and Rico Bearman lead the kiwi contingent as the international season begins with the UCI BMX Racing World Cup in Sarrians, France this weekend.While last year’s BMX Racing World Cup began in New Zealand and Australia, the racing season has ventured back to its heartland in Europe with two double-rounds in France and Netherlands ahead of the July World Championships in the Danish capital of Copenhagen.Walker is edging back into competition after three months off the bike...

Maxwell cements stunning success for kiwi mountain bikers in Austria

New Zealand mountain bikers, led by Sammie Maxwell, have revelled in the cold and muddy conditions to bag a handful of podium performances in the latest round of the UCI MTB World Series in Leogang.Maxwell (Decathlon Ford) finished second in the women’s cross-country race to extend her lead in the championship in her rookie season in elite category.In a nearby part of the Austrian Alps, three kiwi riders earned podium places in the fourth round of the Enduro World Series in challenging cold, m...

Wollaston sprints to first UCI World Tour GC win at Tour of Britain

New Zealand cycling star Ally Wollaston has sprinted her way to overall victory on the final day to win the Tour of Britain.The Suez FDJ professional went into the last stage of the UCI World Tour race around the streets of Glasgow trailing emerging British star, Cat Ferguson from Movistar by three seconds.Wollaston revelled in the circuit racing, picking up the time bonuses in winning all three of the intermediate sprints in Glasgow and then securing the overall honours with a desperate final s...

Victory for gravity rider seals memorable day for kiwis in Austria

New Zealand downhill riders were on fire at the UCI World Series at Leogang in Austria with top-five placings in each of the four championship classes, topped by victory in the junior men.The 18-year-old Oli Clark from Kaikoura, who rides for the MS Racing pro team, scored his first UCI World Cup downhill victory, setting up an outstanding day on the slopes of Leogang.Tauranga’s Eliana Hulsebosch (Santa Cruz Syndicate) was third place in the junior women, before Queenstown’s Jess Blewitt sho...