Quin back to take on world

Speed is everything in the world of downhill mountain biking, so Vanessa Quin's latest move shouldn't surprise.

No sooner had she got medical clearance to race again after a broken neck, she was jetting off to Europe.

Quin arrived yesterday in Switzerland after a whirlwind 36-hour trip, just in time to race this weekend's world cup round in Champ?ry. It will be her first world cup in 13 months after a horror series of crashes.

"It is great to be here - it's just like me to start back into it at a world cup!" Quin said. "There is no pressure for me to do anything but get back my downhilling legs but I'm looking forward to riding again with the best in the business."

The former world downhill champion broke her neck in January at the national championships in Nelson. She crashed at her last world cup in Viga, Spain in May 2006 and spent much of last year recovering from a broken wrist.

The 30-year-old will race this season with a new state-of-the-art protection brace, developed for motocross riders, to remove any threat of damaging her neck again.

"I'll basically do what's left of the world cup circuit, plus a couple of smaller races and a stint at the Red Bull training center in Austria. I'm meeting the guys over here to get my neck checked out and go through the program they do with all their athletes."

Quin's MS-Intense team have paid for her flights and accommodation for the season, removing a huge stress.

"It's great for me - I can just focus on the riding. I'm just so happy to be able to ride at this level again and I just want to make the most of it while I can."

Her season will culminate in the Fort William world championships in Scotland, defending a proud record - she hasn't finished out of the top-10 at the worlds since 2000.