Local talent Leary up against it with big names in festival

Hometown hope Nic Leary will target the bike and run stages when she lines up against the strongest women's field ever seen at the 3D Rotorua Multisport Festival.

The Rotorua festival is being held tomorrow with the premier race featuring a 9km paddle on Lake Tikitapu (Blue Lake) followed by a 30km mountain bike and an 11km run, in the Whakarewarewa Forest.

Leary placed second in the women's race last year and will be up against defending champion Elina Ussher (Nelson), Speight's Coast to Coast champion Sophie Hart (Nelson) as well as several power houses from Wanaka and Australia.

"I haven't raced for six months so I don't know what sort of pace or shape I'm going to be in, and the field's a little bit better this year, but if you can not beat yourself up too much on the mountain bike and still run fast you're in with a shot," Leary said.

The annual Rotorua festival has grown in size since it was introduced in 2011 and is expected to attract about 1000 competitors across 10 events tomorrow.

The premier race is the most popular of the events, with legendary multisport couple Richard and Elina Ussher returning this year to defend their titles in the men's and women's races.

Richard Ussher said he and his wife would be looking to gain some confidence from tomorrow's race after missing out on the Speight's Coast to Coast titles earlier this year.

"We're certainly very motivated but probably not directly motivated by the losses at Coast," he said.

"There were a lot of issues around then, especially to do with our health, and so now is about trying to put in the sort of performances we know we can do and slowly get the form and confidence back up."

He said the relatively short multisport course in Rotorua made the event exciting, with everyone staying much closer during the race. Other favourites for the men's race tomorrow include Wanaka sensation Dougal Allan, who praised the layout of the course in Rotorua.

"Too many multisport races I do have either road cycling or non-technical off-road biking stages," he said.

"I think good quality single track riding is an essential ingredient in a multisport event as it really distinguishes us from triathlon."

Allan said he had taken confidence from beating Ussher last year at the Lake Waikaremoana Challenge, but said it was going to be tough to do it again.

"It certainly helped me realise I could do it. However, I don't think anyone can consider themselves a favourite on a start line that contains Richard," he said.

"He is still the best in the multisport world and any chance I get to compare myself against him is a really exciting thing for me."

The winners of tomorrow's race will gain the 2013 Australasian Multisport Championship title as well as the ThermaTech 3D Rotorua Multisport Festival title.

This will be the third consecutive year the title has been contested in Rotorua. More than $75,000 of cash and prizes is up for grabs during the event.