Mountain bike national hub announces 2018 squad

Shania Rawson in action at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Cairns. Photo/Cam Mackenzie Photos

The Subway Mountain Bike National Performance Hub is set to grow on an outstanding inaugural year, after the announcement of the 2018 intake.

The Hub is one of a potential seven hubs that underpin Cycling New Zealand's strategy to foster and grow young cycling talent, and increase the quantity and quality of riders feeding into the National High Performance Programme.

The Mountain Bike National Performance Hub, which is based at the campus of major sponsor Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology in Rotorua, enjoyed its first podium and four top-20 placings at the UCI World Championships.

Downhiller Shania Rawson (Tauranga) won the silver medal in the junior women while North Canterbury's Ben Oliver was ninth in the under-23 men's cross country to lead the Hub riders at the world championships.

The squad had several training camps in Rotorua, renowned for its world class mountain bike trails, and received expert tuition in all aspects of high performance training, preparation and racing.

"The results for a first year were above our expectations," said Cycling New Zealand's Hub coach Sam Thompson.

"The results across the board in major competition speak for themselves.

"But more important was the development of the young riders in their understanding of what it takes to be a high performance athlete, and their progress both on and off the bike was significant.

"They also had the benefit of some major international competition in Europe which is a major component of their development.

"Several of our riders have now progressed on to the elite ranks, some are back for a second year, while there is a new wave of young riders to come into the Hub for 2018 which is very exciting."

The squad for 2018 is:

Cross country: Liv Bishop (Blenheim), Caleb Botcher (Palmerston North), Eden Cruise (Wellington), Hamish Dodd (Rotorua), Connor Johnston (Rotorua), Taylor Johnston (Rotorua), Jessica Manchester (Auckland), Sammy Maxwell (Taupo), Ben Oliver (Christchurch), Craig Oliver (Christchurch), Max Taylor (Palmerston North), Phoebe Young (Wanaka).

Downhill: Isaac Ewen (Auckland), Nico Fernandez (Queenstown), Sam Gale (Nelson), Charlie Makea (Napier), Hamish McLeod (Queenstown), Josh Oxenham (Auckland), Shania Rawson (Rotorua), Sam Robbie (Queenstown), Louis Vuleta (Auckland).