Rotorua’s Jenna Hastings and Tuhoto-Ariki Pene claimed the elite women and men’s titles in the Mountain Bike Rotorua Downhill National Championships on Sunday.
A Cycling New Zealand media release says both riders compete for UCI professional teams with Hastings, 20, riding for Pivot Factory and Pene, 23, with MS Intense on the UCI world circuit.
They powered down the famed Taniwha Track in the Whakarewarewa Forest, a 1.8km run with a 309m descent, to secure their first elite titles and will sport the national jersey on the world stage this year.
“It started a bit slick on track and dried out and became more blown out as more people raced on it,” Hastings told Cycling New Zealand.
“I took it step by step and tried not to push too hard as I am trying to stay healthy. It paid off and I am stoked.”
She was fastest in the seeding run and claimed the win by nearly 3s from double junior world championship place-getter Sacha Earnest, and Hastings’ younger sister, Kate, who was an impressive third.
Rotorua’s Jenna Hastings claimed the elite women’s title in the Mountain Bike Rotorua Downhill National Championships in Rotorua on Sunday. Photo / Cycling NZ
Pene, third junior at the 2019 world championships in Canada, won the national junior title in 2018 and has been runner-up in the elite competition in 2022 and last year, both in Queenstown.
He was fastest in the seeding run, then watched as fellow Rotorua professional Lachlan Stevens-McNab, a top-10 world-ranked gravity rider, took the lead with a strong run of 2:31.5.
Last to run, Pene clocked 2:26.93 ahead of Stevens-McNab’s 2:27.97 for Pene’s first national elite crown, which proved a popular victory.
“I was pretty confident in the track, my riding, the environment … everything. I ended up pulling off the top step,” Pene said.
“I am so glad to actually win here in Rotorua because it’s home town and I finally get to win a nationals here. It is real special to win here where I grew up and where I learned riding.”
Outstanding junior prospect Oli Clark, of Kaikōura, was third in 2:32.89.
Cooper and Maxwell claim cross-country titles
Olympians Anton Cooper and Sammie Maxwell chalked up their 10th and fifth cross-country national titles respectively in Rotorua on Saturday.
Cycling New Zealand reported Cooper returned to the winner’s podium, after spending much of last year out with illness, to lead home the elite men’s competition. Maxwell dominated the women’s competition after recovering from illness last week.
The pair of Kiwi professionals will now head across the Tasman for the UCI Continental Series in Canberra before the Oceania Championships as the lead-in to the start of the UCI World Series in Brazil.
Anton Cooper chalked up his 10th cross-country national title on Saturday. Photo / Cycling NZ
Cooper, who rides for the Lapierre Racing Unity professional team, edged away from Auckland’s Matthew Wilson on the second lap and continued to extend his lead, winning in 1:34.09 in dry, warm conditions in the Whakarewarewa Forest.
He finished 1m 37s clear of Wilson with Taupō’s Coen Nicol nearly 3 minutes back in third.
“I didn’t know what to expect today, having not raced at this level for quite a while,” Cooper said.
“I knew my form in training had been quite good, but translating that to race performance is a different thing.
“I felt strong all day and Matt [Wilson] was super-strong. I was able to attack him over the top on the second lap and kept on it from there.
“Ten elite national titles is pretty special, and five in the age categories, so I have a few of these jerseys now and hopefully it is not the last one.”
It was more emphatic for Maxwell, the Decathlon Ford professional, who was in a class of her own to win in 1:32.49 with former national champion Josie Wilcox from Nelson 6:42 back in second with Christchurch’s Marie Laurie a further 2 minutes in arrears in third.
Sammie Maxwell won her fifth cross-country national title. Photo / Cycling NZ
Maxwell was pleased with her fifth national elite title, at just 23 years of age, and after recovering sufficiently from illness last week.
“The body was feeling all right, but the energy levels were lacking a bit, so I am happy to walk away with the Fern again.
“We have some good UCI points for us in the Continental Series in Australia next weekend before a final training black ahead of Oceania Champs and then the start of the international series. So I am pretty excited,” she said.
