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Anton Cooper

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Anton Cooper
Anton Cooper at the McLeans Island 12 Hour Day/Nighter, October 2012
Personal information
Full nameAnton Cooper
Born(1994-08-11)11 August 1994(age 29)
Team information
DisciplineMountain bike racing
Rider typeCross-country
Professional teams
2012Trek World Racing
2013–Cannondale Factory Racing
Medal record
Men'smountain bike racing
RepresentingNew Zealand
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Glasgow Cross-country
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2015 Vallnord Under-23 cross-country
Gold medal – first place 2012 Leogang Junior cross-country
Silver medal – second place 2011 Champéry Junior cross-country

Anton Cooper(born 11 August 1994)[1]is a New Zealandcross-countrycyclist who races for theTrek FactoryRacing XC Team.[2]He is the 2015 World Under 23 Cross-countryMountain bikechampion and the 2012 World Junior Cross-country Mountain bike champion.[3]One of the two contenders for the country's2016 Summer Olympicsquota spot, he developedchronic fatigueearlier in 2016 and the nomination went toSam Gazeinstead. Cooper represented New Zealand at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, finishing sixth in the Men's Cross-country Mountain Bike final.[4]

Early life and education[edit]

Cooper is fromWoodend,a town in theWaimakariri District26 kilometres (16 mi) north ofChristchurch.[5][1]His parents are Paul and Laila Cooper, and he has several sisters.[1][6]He received his education atChristchurch Boys' High School[5][7]and he graduated in 2012.[8]He has since moved to the Christchurch hill suburbWestmorland,not far from theChristchurch Adventure Park.[9]

Cycling career[edit]

Cooper in February 2014

Cooper started racing aged 11, encouraged by his father.[1]Apart from cross country riding, he enjoyscross country runningand tennis.[1]Among other riders, he admiresJulien AbsalonandNino Schurter,and among other athletes, he looks up to formerrugby unionplayerRichie McCaw,cricketerBrendon McCullum,and rowersHamish BondandEric Murray.[1]Before receiving professional sponsorship, he was discovered as a strong talent by Christchurch adventure racers Steve Moffatt andSteve Gurney,who organised financial support from various business people.[10]

As a 16-year-old, he surprised by winning the 2011Karapoti ClassicinUpper Hutt.[11]When the February2011 Christchurch earthquakehit, his competition bike got stuck in a bike shop and he had to compete at the nationals on an old training bike.[9]Significant wins in his career as an amateur include winning silver at theWorld mountain bike championshipsinChampéry,Switzerland in 2011,[7]and winning gold in the2012 World mountain bike championshipsinSaalfelden,Austria.[12]Cooper is the first New Zealander who won a world championship in cross country cycling, and it was his last race before he turned professional.[12]He then won gold at the2014 Commonwealth GamesinGlasgow,Scotland, a race in whichSam GazefromRotorua,New Zealand, won silver, making it the first gold–silver win for New Zealand at theCommonwealth Games.[5]Cooper then became Under 23 Cross-country world champion at the2015 World mountain bike championshipsinAndorra.[13]

In December 2011, Cooper signed a sponsorship contract with theTrek Bicycle Corporationfor 12 months.[8]Trek decided to focus on downhill racing and Cooper signed a contract with theCannondale Bicycle Corporationin December 2012 for 24 months.[14]

Rules set by theUnion Cycliste Internationale(UCI), the world governing body for sports cycling, stipulate that mountain bikers must be at least 19 years old in the year Olympic Games are held to be allowed to compete. Cooper was outside of that requirement by eight months for the2012 Summer OlympicsinLondon.BikeNZ,New Zealand's national governing body of cycle racing, sought a dispensation for Cooper but this was declined.[8]New Zealand was given one quota place for a male mountain biker for the2016 Summer OlympicsinRio de Janeiro,Brazil, with the general expectation that either Gaze or Cooper will be chosen.[15]Cooper's 2016 World Cup races were upset by him developing chronic fatigue, with him first recognising symptoms in February 2016.[16]In June 2016, the Rio selection was thus awarded to Gaze,[17]and it caused Cooper some "really dark weeks".[18]Cooper suspended his 2016 campaign and returned home to New Zealand from his Northern Hemisphere summer base in Germany. In August, he underwent surgery onadenoidsthat are giving him problems.[16]Ahead of the 2017 national championships, he lost access to his bike once more as he had been evacuated from his Westmorland home due to the2017 Port Hills fires,but Police let him through the cordon to retrieve all he needed to travel to the competition.[9]

Major results[edit]

2011
UCI Junior XCO World Cup
1stNové Město
1stVal di Sole
1stKarapoti Classic
2ndCross-country,UCI World Junior Championships
2012
1stCross-country,UCI World Junior Championships
UCI Junior XCO World Cup
1stPietermaritzburg
1stMont-Sainte-Anne
1stWindham
2013
1stCross-country, National Championships
1stCross-country, Oceania Under-23 Championships
UCI Junior XCO World Cup
1stMont-Sainte-Anne
2ndHafjell
2014
1stCross-country,Commonwealth Games
2015
1stCross-country, National Championships
1stCross-country,UCI World Under-23 Championships
2016
1stCross-country, Oceania Championships
2nd Cross-country, National Championships
2017
1stCross-country, Oceania Championships
National Championships
1stCross-country
1stEliminator
Swiss Bike Cup
1stGränichen
UCI XCO World Cup
3rdAlbstadt
2018
1stCross-country, Oceania Championships
1stCross-country, National Championships
2ndCross-country,Commonwealth Games
UCI XCO World Cup
2ndNové Město
2019
1stCross-country, Oceania Championships
1stCross-country, National Championships
Copa Catalana Internacional
1stBanyoles
Swiss Bike Cup
2ndAndermatt
2020
1stCross-country, Oceania Championships
1stCross-country, National Championships
1st Rund um den Roadlberg
Swiss Bike Cup
2ndGstaad
2021
1stCross-country, National Championships
Swiss Bike Cup
1stGränichen
UCI XCO World Cup
3rdLeogang
2022
1stCross-country, Oceania Championships
1stCross-country, National Championships
Swiss Bike Cup
3rdBasel
2023
Swiss Bike Cup
1stBasel

References[edit]

  1. ^abcdef"Anton Cooper".23degrees.Retrieved24 April2016.
  2. ^"Cooper signs with Cannondale Factory Racing Team for 2013".Cycling News.Future Publishing Limited. 13 December 2012.Retrieved14 December2012.
  3. ^"Cooper ends junior career with world championship victory".Retrieved29 October2012.
  4. ^Long, David (26 July 2021)."Tokyo Olympics: Anton Cooper sixth in mountain bike race as Tom Pidcock claims gold".Stuff.Retrieved3 April2022.
  5. ^abcRichens, Matt (30 July 2014)."Anton Cooper wins with mountainbike gold".The Press.Retrieved24 April2016.
  6. ^Stylianou, Georgina (31 July 2014)."'Sporty Woodend kid' Cooper claims the gold ".Stuff.Retrieved24 April2016.
  7. ^abRichens, Matt (8 September 2011)."Canterbury teens bring medals home".The Press.Retrieved24 April2016.
  8. ^abcTutty, Kevin (14 December 2011)."Trek signs Christchurch mountain biker".The Press.Retrieved24 April2016.
  9. ^abcvan Royen, Robert (17 February 2017)."Mountain biking star gets through cordon".The Press.p. B12.Retrieved19 February2017.
  10. ^Gifford, Phil (3 August 2014)."No hakas but Glasgow Games have been blast".Stuff.Retrieved24 April2016.
  11. ^"16-year-old wins Karapoti Classic".Stuff.7 March 2011.Retrieved12 February2017.
  12. ^abGeorge, Sue (8 September 2012)."Cooper ends junior career with world championship victory".Cyclingnews.com.Retrieved24 April2016.
  13. ^Davis, Hanne (10 September 2015)."World junior mountain bike champion Anton Cooper targets Olympic medal".Stuff.Retrieved24 April2016.
  14. ^"Cooper to compete at worlds for Cannondale".The Press.15 December 2012.Retrieved24 April2016.
  15. ^"Gaze ready for mountain bike showdown with Kiwi world champion".Cycling New Zealand.17 March 2016.Retrieved24 April2016.
  16. ^abvan Royen, Robert (19 August 2016)."Canterbury Mountain Biker Anton Cooper home and ready for surgery next week".Stuff.Retrieved21 August2016.
  17. ^"Sam Gaze beats out Anton Cooper for Rio selection".Newshub.10 June 2016.Retrieved21 August2016.
  18. ^van Royen, Robert (14 July 2016)."Mountain biker Anton Cooper down but not out after missing out on Rio".Stuff.Retrieved21 August2016.

External links[edit]

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