Three New Zealand BMX riders begin their international season with the opening round of the UCI Supercross World Cup in Argentina this weekend.
National champion Trent Jones, Daniel Franks and Matt Cameron – part of Cycling New Zealand’s high performance squad – will compete at Santiago del Estero.
Meanwhile at home more than 900 riders will converge on the Sunset Coast club at Puni near Pukekohe for the New Zealand BMX Championships.
Cycling New Zealand BMX coach Ryan Hollows said the riders have settled well and looking forward the World Cup competition.
“We are down to the last four main qualifying events for the Rio Olympics so we are expecting the competition to be fierce,” Hollows said.
There is a full field of 169 men from 29 countries and 54 women from 21 nations set to do battle over two days.
“The track is much the same as last year and in excellent condition. It is not massive but always produces great racing and demands all round bike skills.
“Our guys are all in good shape and we’re looking for solid performances from them all to continue to secure valuable Olympic qualifying points.”
The World cup has drawn most of the world’s best with the riders competing in three motos on Friday (local time) with qualifiers joining the top 16 seeds in the men (and top eight in the women) who are exempt to elimination races on Saturday.
Meanwhile there are loads of talented young riders on display at Puni over the weekend for the national championships.
Racing starts on Friday with trials for the Mighty 11s for selection for the upcoming test series against Australia, followed by racing in the Cruiser class (larger 24in diameter wheels).
The Challenge racing for age groups up to 14 years takes place on Saturday and for riders 14 years and over on Sunday.
