Cycling: Novice claims place in national team

Cyclists such as Alison Shanks rarely come through the pack, says BikeNZ high performance manager Michael Flynn.

Shanks, 22, has had a meteoric rise through the ranks based on a limited diet of competitive cycling. Yesterday, she was named in the New Zealand road team for the Oceania Championships at Wanganui this month.

Flynn expected to see more of the former Otago Rebel netballer after impressive performances in her national road race debut at Palmerston North last month.

Shanks was named alongside Olympic and world 3000m individual pursuit champion Sarah Ulmer in the 10-strong elite women's squad.

Ulmer, eyeing next year's Commonwealth Games, continues her transformation to road cycling after winning the 25km time trial and 105km road race at the national championships .

A 12-man elite team was also named, and was likely to be spearheaded by experienced campaigners Gordon MacCauley and Robin Reid at the championships, which run from November 30 to December 4.

"It is a remarkable effort," Flynn said of Shanks' form since taking to cycling seriously last summer.

"She ran third in the time trial and sixth in the road race at the nationals and thoroughly deserves to be given this opportunity."

Shanks took up cycling as a way of spending more time with her then-boyfriend, world champion rider Greg Henderson.

She had been riding a bike on a training programme for just one month before her effort at the nationals, and displayed the physical attributes required of a top cyclist, Flynn said.

More training was needed to hone her technical skills.

"What she needs to improve on is the technical parts of things - how to pedal properly, where she sits on the bike, her positioning in a peleton and stuff like that.

"But it will be interesting to see if she does show the improvement that we expected her to show."

Flynn said the combination of experience and youth within the men's squad was exciting, with great potential shown by some of the under-23 riders who have progressed to the elite level.

He declined to make predictions on medal success in the road races and time trials, but said he expected to see good performances with selection for the Commonwealth Games looming.

"What I expect is for athletes to actually do the job they're required to do and be aggressive about it. Then they give themselves and the team a chance to get a result."

Australia were expected to provide the toughest opposition.

Said Flynn: "I'm hoping they send a top-end women's team."

- NZPA