Cooper well off pace at world champs

New Zealand rider Anton Cooper had just a brief reason to smile, before having to be content with 31st placing in the elite men’s cross-country race at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship in Switzerland yesterday.

Cooper made a bold start off the front row to go with multi world champion Nino Schurter (Switzerland) for the lightningfast opening lap in front of 40,000 fans jammed on to the course in the Swiss mountain resort of Lenzerheide.

Despite being spurred on by a vocal Kiwi contingent in the crowd, Cooper buttoned off the pace in the latter part of the first of eight laps to fall back to join the chasing pack. From that point it proved a day when the body would not match the intention, and he dropped away, unable to make his usual late charge in the race.

‘‘I knew I had to back off from that start pace after what was a really good start,’’ he said. ‘‘Usually, after a couple of laps backing off I am able to come strong again but it just didn’t happen today.’’

Shurter burnt off all opposition to win his seventh rainbow jersey and cement his place as the most successful male crosscountry mountain bike rider.

Italian Gerhard Kerschbaumer finished second, holding on to Schurter until the final lap, with Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel – a world champion in cyclo-cross, and junior world champion road racer – finishing third.

Focus moved to the downhill course this morning with hopes of success for the New Zealand team, where MS Mondraker professional Brook Macdonald qualified fastest in the elite men.

He is joined by Ed Masters, brother Wyn Masters, Sam Blenkinsop, Keegan Wright and Matthew Walker, who all qualified for the elite final; along with last year’s junior medallist Shania Rawson and Virginia Armstrong in the elite women’s final.