The international mountain bike season crosses the Atlantic to North America for the final two rounds of the UCI World Series with much at stake for New Zealand riders.
There are 24 kiwi riders entered for the UCI World Cup stops at Snowshoe in Pocahontas County, West Virginia USA, and the season finale at the famed Canadian resort of Mont-Sainte-Anne at Beaupre, only 40km from Quebec City.
The downhill track at Snowshoe blends both high-speed and technical terrain over its 2.1km length with a vertical drop of over 470m, with a key to build speed early before the technical challenge over the rocky bottom half of the course.
The cross-country course is a tick under 4km per lap with a mix of natural open terrain and man-made features over the undulating course with medium-sized uphills and small descents. It is renowned for its high speeds and tight racing.
While there are 10 months to the Paris Olympics, there is much at stake over the final two rounds of the world series for cross-country.
New Zealand men have edged their way to ninth overall in the rankings, with the top eight nations earning Olympic qualification for two riders. The kiwis are just 68 points behind eighth-placed Spain with the consistent Anton Cooper on 952 points while superb world championship podiums for Sam Gaze saw him rocket to 982 points. Strong performances over the next two weekends from this pair and Ben Oliver in the elite men will aid the kiwi cause immeasurably.
Under-23 world champion Sammie Maxwell has pushed up to third overall on points, just 90 behind second place and 155 from the lead. Importantly the Taupo rider has accounted for over 70 percent of the kiwi female cross-country tally which sees New Zealand 15th in the ranking, which would earn one spot for Paris. It is extremely tight with a bunch of nations fighting for the final few spots.
The downhill hopes lie with junior women, where world champion Erice van Leuven returns to action. The Commencal Les Orres professional lies third overall in the season rankings, despite missing two rounds with injury, to be 65 points off the leader Valentina Roa Sanchez.
Fellow kiwi Sacha Earnest, third at the worlds, is currently fifth on 155 but only 15 points off fourth and a top three spot is within her capability.
Competition begins on Friday morning (NZ time) with qualifying for junior downhill and the under-23 short-track cross-country races.
The junior downhill races are on Saturday morning (NZT) followed by elite qualifying, ahead of the elite short track cross-country.
Sunday early morning NZT features the elite downhill semifinals followed by finals, while Monday features the under-23 and elite cross-country races.
New Zealand entries for Snowshoe are:
Cross-country, Men, elite: Anton Cooper (Trek Factory), Sam Gaze (Alpecin-Fenix), Ben Oliver (Mito-Q).
Under-23: Caleb Bottcher (Palmerston North), Ethan Rose (Team Talleys), Matthew Wilson (Team Talleys).
Women, under-23: Annabel Bligh (Team Talleys), Amelie Mackay (Team Talleys), Sammie Maxwell (NZ MTB Academy), Ruby Ryan (Rotorua).
Downhill, Elite men: Nico Arnold (Wanaka), Sam Blenkinsop (Crestline), Geroge Brannigan (NS Bikes UR), Cameron Clemett (Synergy 37), James MacDermid (The Alliance), William MacDermid (The Alliance), Brook MacDonald (MS Mondraker), Wyn Masters (GT Continental), Toby Meek (MS Mondraker), Tuhoto-Ariki Pene (MS Mondraker), Lachlan Stevens-McNab (Union), Matthew Walker (Pivot Factory), Alex Wayman (The Alliance).
Women: Jenna Hastings (Pivot Factory),
Junior, men: Luke Wayman (The Alliance).
Junior female: Sacha Earnest (KiwiDH), Erice van Leuven (Commencal Les Orres)
Vision available: https://ucimtbworldseries.com/