Cooper’s crown

Commonwealth Games champion Anton Cooper has bounced back from a year of illness and chronic fatigue to win the national elite cross-country mountain bike title. The former junior world under-23 world champion from North Canterbury took the men’s crown at the Cardrona Alpine Resort near Wanaka on Saturday. Australiabased Wellington rider Samara Sheppard won the women’s title. Cooper, who was forced to leave his home after fires on Christchurch’s Port Hills last week, pushed into the lead before the single track on the opening lap, and was never threatened, going on to win in 1hr 23min 21sec. The 22-year-old finished nearly four minutes ahead of fellow North Canterbury rider Ben Oliver, 20, a member of the Cycling New Zealand’s MTB national performance hub. Porirua’s Jack Compton, 21, was third, two minutes behind Oliver.