Rotorua's Sam Osborne, pictured running along the Lake Tikitapu shoreline in the men's pro race at Xterra Rotorua last year. Photo/File
Rotorua's Sam Osborne, pictured running along the Lake Tikitapu shoreline in the men's pro race at Xterra Rotorua last year. Photo/File
An exhilarating race is expected between some of the world's best Xterra athletes at the premier event of the Radix Nutrition Xterra Rotorua Festival tomorrow.
Defending champion Braden Currie of Wanaka, who won the Ironman New Zealand in Taupo last month and finished second in the Coast to Coast, will once again look to hold off local top contenders Sam Osborne and Olly Shaw over the Xterra long course.
Osborne, 25, is on the hunt for revenge after finishing runnerup behind Currie for the past two years.
Osborne is feeling confident going on to the race on the back of winning the Xterra Saipan Championship in the Northern Marianas last month.
"I know the form is there - it's just about putting it all together now," he said. "Braden definitely brings the best out of me when I'm running. He really is my rival in this - for the last two years I've been 12 or 13 seconds behind - I can't forget that."
"But it's not just Braden. You can't write off anyone and there are lots of guys who could push up."
The route will consist of a challenging 1km swim across Tikitapu (Blue Lake), a gruelling 26km mountain bike in the Whakarewarewa forest, finished with a 11km trail run around Tikitapu.
"I do know the trails inside out and know the best lines but for me home advantage is more about what the crowd support gives you on the day," Osborne said. "I want to put in a good performance and I'll be going for the top spot on home soil."
Shaw, 25, who spent much of the summer focusing on training, said he had much to prove after last year's fourth-placed finish.
Local Olly Shaw is aiming for a strong technical bike section in the Xterra Rotorua long course this year. Photo/File
"Some may say the pressure is off because a lot aren't expecting too much from me - I am the underdog but my plan is to go out and win," he said. "I haven't raced a lot recently but I feel very fresh and I hope that gives me an advantage. I was very flat last year - it wasn't the race I wanted to run so I have a lot to prove this year."
Shaw has raced the course multiple times recently in preparation.
"There'll be no surprises on the day," he said. "The course suits me because it's a short swim and a technical bike which plays to my strengths. I'll just have to be cautious in the swim - I have to keep up with Braden and Sam because they are very strong swimmers. I need to keep the gap as small as I can to give myself a chance."
In the women's field, former Xterra Rotorua champion Jacqui Allen (GB) and Switzerland's Renata Bucher will be ones to watch. Bucher won her 34th Xterra race, in Thailand recently.
The weekend's 15th Xterra Rotorua Festival has other events, including a 5.5km, 11km or 21km run and walk. Locally 234 participants are entered across all events - an 11 per cent rise on last year.
Osborne and Shaw, who will both continue to compete in the Xterra Asia Pacific tour after the weekend, said competing in Rotorua was one of the highlights of the year.
"This is an important part of the tour and I want to pick up good points here," said Osborne. "This is my home race and I really want to win.
Shaw interjected: "This means a lot to me. I've been doing it for the past nine years or so and this is the reason I race Xterra. "
Frank Clarke, the event director added: "What makes this so great is all the different athletes of all different ages competing in all different types of events in of the best locations on earth."
