Mountain biking: Cooper reclaims crown

Anton Cooper edged Sam Gaze to reclaim his national title. Photo / Greg Bowker

Commonwealth Games gold medallist Anton Cooper reclaimed national mountain bike championship after winning the elite men's cross country race in Rotorua today.

In a repeat of their one-two finish at the Glasgow Games, Cooper held off Sam Gaze to edge his rival and reverse the result from last year's nationals.

After both riders cleared out in front of the field early and headed into the last lap of the race side-by-side, Gaze saw his front wheel get wedged in a tree and Cooper seized control to eventually triumph by 1 minute and 10 seconds.

"I really wanted to get the jersey again," said Cooper. "I love wearing it overseas so I decided to focus on [the elite race] a bit more, and it paid off.

"I just wanted to go out and hit most of the climbs hard. I did that but hit a flat spot mid-race and felt a bit sick. I came good, though, and for the last two laps of the race I felt really strong, although it was still really close and could have gone either way.

"But I was able to capitalise on a small fumble by Sam and stretched out a good advantage and pinned the ears back to the finish."

In the women's race, Kate Fluker put in a dominant ride to retain her elite crown, building a big lead after London Olympian Karen Hanlen had a fall on the first lap.

"It's awesome," Fluker said. "I was trying to really focus on international races this year but when you come to a race like this, you always do want to win, so I'm stoked."