Cross country mountain bikers will descend on Alexandra for the second edition of The 2022 Prospector Race later this week. 

The three day event will return to the district from March 11 to 13, where some healthy trans Tasman rivalry will be on show following the announcement Clyde born Samara Sheppard will return from Australia with her Australian partner Kyle Ward for the mixed team category.

Samara is a multiple national and Oceania mountain bike champion and is thrilled that she can return to race. 

“We are super excited to jump over the ditch to race The Prospector MTB race together.

“I was born in Clyde and together we have spent many summers exploring on mountain bikes here.

"We love the landscape around Alexandra and can't wait to explore new sections where the Prospector race will take us . . . it's great to be able to experience a challenge of this calibre so close to home.”

Joining Samara and Kyle in the mixed team category is Josie Wilcox and top junior racer Ben Wilson from Team Talleys, who have only just paired up this week due to team mate injuries.

Fresh from his win at the XC Nationals Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist Anton Cooper was looking to add The 2022 Prospector win to his resume after an excruciatingly tight race with his Team Trek team-mate Ethan Rose last year.

They were placed second after finishing behind Team Mito Q - NZ Cycling project’s Ben Oliver (2nd at XC Nationals) and Josh Burnett.

However, Ethan was diagnosed with glandular fever this week ruling the team out.

The field is a who’s-who of mountain biking, including brotherly rivalry with Craig Oliver (3rd at XC Nationals) and his team mate Sam Shaw in contention with Ben and Josh.

As well as Talley's Kiwi MTB Collective, Cameron Joes and Matthew Wilson. 

The women’s field contains some strong pairings to contend for the podium spots.

Sarah Ward Gilbert who came second last year in a mixed team is returning with Mary Gray who recently came second in the Elite Women’s XC Nationals, in Team Powered by MitoQ.

Imi Blance and Anna Bristow, who won the women’s individual category last year, have joined forces as Team 2 Broke Girls.

The 2022 Prospector Race has sold out of its 200 spots and race director / co-founder Jimmy Williamson is thrilled at the excitement around the event.

“We are just stoked to be able to host our event in these times and give our riders and our local community something to look forward to.

"We have limited our race to two groups of 100 riders so we could make sure we delivered a safe and competitive event for everyone.

"We have had to do a lot of due diligence over the past months to make sure we are adhering to Covid-19 Protection Framework and are confident in our processes.

"We are super excited to showcase Central Otago, Alexandra and our local hospitality to all these top riders and really put our epic three day mountain bike stage race on the map.”