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Sammie Maxwell has qualified second in the elite women's short track. PHOTO: NOAM MERESSE Unlucky for some, but not for New Zealand riders, with a record 13 gravity flyers qualifying for finals on the first day of the triple-header UCI MTB World Series in Leogang, Austria. Also emerging was in-form cross-country star Sammie Maxwell, with the Decathlon Ford professional finishing runner-up in the elite women’s short track on the first day of the triple header competition for cross-country, downhill and enduro. LATEST HEADLINES: Fox targets lead at Canadian Open Coll cruises into British Open semis Crusaders beat Reds to reach semis Kiwi duo continue Challenger form Ryan Fox top-20 round 1 Canadian Open In downhill, qualification was via two stages with 20 riders through in the first stage and a further 10 in the second for elite men, with 10 in the first run and a further five in the second for elite women. Junior qualification was direct with the fastest 20 males and 10 females to progress to tomorrow’s finals. Three kiwi men are through to the elite men’s final led by the in-form MS Racing rider, Tuhoto-Ariki Pene (Rotorua) who was 12th fastest overall in qualifying, just two seconds down on top qualifier Loris Vergier (France). Joining him in the final is fellow Rotorua rider Lachie Stevens-McNab (Trek Factory) who was 19th overall with a further half second back with Nelson’s Sam Gale who secured the final qualifying spot from the first session. Stevens-McNab was the fastest through the speed trap at 58kph with all three exceptional in the final sector to cement their place in tomorrow’s final. Christchurch’s Luke Wayman (Continental Atherton) was the unlucky kiwi, missing out on qualifying by 0.4s. Multi-national champion Jess Blewitt (Cube Factory) enjoyed her best qualifying session this season, with the Queenstown rider 10th fastest in the opening run while Rotorua’s Pivot Factory rider, Jenna Hastings just missed out in the second session. Not so fortunate was Auckland’s Sacha Earnest with the Trek Factory rider not starting after a hard crash although setting her sights on a return for the next round. The kiwi juniors were impressive with six men and four women qualifying for tomorrow’s finals. Kaikoura’s MS Racing professional, Oli Clark topped qualifiers with a brilliant run. He will be joined by Yeti Fox rider Tyler Waite from Clive who was sixth fastest, along with the Queenstown trio of Jonty Williamson (Yeti Fox), Rory Meek and Malik Boatwright (High Country) while rookie junior, Sterling Stevens-McNab (Rotorua) missed out on his first final by just 0.3s. The junior women were also outstanding, led by Tauranga teen Eliana Hulsebosch (Santa Cruz) who was second fastest, and joined in the top-10 by Rotorua’s Kate Hastings and Belah Birchall and Queenstown’s Indy Deavoll. The cross-country focus was on short track with Maxwell again showing her speed to finish second behind Dutch star Puck Pieterse with the pair joined by series leader Evie Richards (GBR) at the front over the opening two laps. Richards dropped off on lap four, with Pieterse edging clear from Maxwell on the following lap. The Kiwi rider finished strongly over the closing laps for second to move up to fourth overall in the short track table. Former short track world champion, Sam Gaze, recovering from illness, will focus on the cross-country elite race on Monday (NZ time), with American Christopher Blevins winning his fourth straight short track world series race. In the under-23 short track races, New Zealanders Ethan Rose and Coen Nicol were 25th and 27s respectively with Amelie Mackay 18th in the junior women. Tomorrow’s action features the downhill finals with the cross-country and enduro decided on Monday (NZ time). Results: Downhill, qualifying 1: Men Elite, qualifying 1: Loris Vergier (FRA) 3:02.481, 1; Jordan Willians (GBR) at 0.687, 2; Amoury Pierron (FRA) at 0.773, 3. NZers to qualify: Tuhoto-Ariki Pene (MS Racing, Rotorua) at 2.029, 12; Lachie Stevens-McNab (Trek Factory, Rotorua) at 2.509, 19; Sam Gale (Nelson) at 2.592, 20. Female elite, qualifying 1: Valentina Holl (AUT) 3:28.400, 1; Anna Newkirk (USA) at 1.095, 2; Tahnee Seagrave (GBR) at 3.146, 3. NZers to qualify: Jess Blewitt (Cube Factory, Queenstown) at 7.742, 10. Junior men: Oli Clark (MS Racing, Kaikoura) 3:03.326, 1; Max Alran (FRA) at 1/359, 2; Kasper Hockman (FIN) at 2.670, 3. Also qualified: Tyler Waite (Yeti Fox, Hawkes Bay) at 4.701, 6; Jonty Williamson (Yeti Fox, Queenstown) at 5,119m 7; Rory Meek (Queenstown) at 6.918, 9; Malik Boatwright (Team High Country), Queenstown) at 6.977, 10. Junior women: Rosa Zierl (AUT) 3:34.594, 1; Eliana Hulsebosch (Santa Cruz Syn, Tauranga) at 1.557, 2; Aleta Ostgaard (USA) at 6.677, 3. Also NZers: Kate Hastings (Rotorua) at 7.546, 4; Belah Birchall (Team High Country, Rotorua) at 11.093, 6; Indy Deavoll at 14.883, 10. Cross-country, short track, elite female: Puck Pieterse (NED) 21.13, 1; Samara Maxwell (Decathlon Ford, NZL) at 16s, 2; Nicole Koller (SUI) at 21s, 3. Elite male: Chris Blevins (USA) 23:00, 1; Martin Kossmann (CHI) same time, 2; Charlie Aldridge (GBR) at 1s, 3.

Ryan Fox is joint leader at the PGA's Canadian Open PHOTO: GOLF NZ/PGA TOUR Ryan Fox has a share of the lead going into the final day of the Canadian Open near Toronto on the PGA Tour. Fox along with Italian veteran Matteo Manassero are at six-under after three rounds, the New Zealander carding a 64 to go with his first two rounds of 66 and 66. LATEST HEADLINES: Hurricanes in semifinal defeated Coll ousted in British Open semis Injury-hit Warriors destroy Sharks Kaikoura rider first UCI MTB win Blues win late v Chiefs, into semis He fired seven birdies and one bogey with 22 nireplayers within four strokes of the lead. Fox, 38, is aiming to build off his first US PGA Tour title, captured in a playoff at the Myrtle Beach Classic last month. He started his round with three straight birdies and had five on the front nine, bouncing back from a bogey at 11 -- where he was in the water -- with birdies at 12 and 18. “To be honest, everything went pretty right,” Fox said. “I drove it great. I think, if you do that round here, you give yourself lots of chances. “Had a lot of good wedge shots, holed a few putts early. Just played really solid kind of stress-free golf for the most part.” Meanwhile at the KLM Open in the Netherlands on the DP World Tour Daniel Hillier is tied 28th at one-over after a third round 72. Hillier, 26 had a round featuring five bogeys and four birdies and is 11 shots off the lead.

Close marking in the Mystics clash with Pulse PHOTO: LINTOTT PHOTOGRAPHY The Mystics have completed a beautiful comeback from the previous round in the ANZ Premiership to beat the Pulse 64-51 in Wellington. The win means the Mystics are now have four wins and one loss for the season alongside the Tactix. LATEST HEADLINES: Kiwis Reynolds, Watt win title NZ All Whites beat Ivory Coast Fox joint leader Canadian Open Hurricanes in semifinal defeated Coll ousted in British Open semis The match was a replay of last seasons final but ended with a bigger margin as th enorthern side started strong winning the first quarter 15-11. However in the second it was all the Mystics scoring 21-13. It wasn't that their shooting was better, but that they were fed more ball and used it well through the centre of court. The 36-24 lead at the halftime break proved to be telling as thing started to slow down in the third and fourth as the Pulse tightened their defence and kept up the good shooting Quarter three had the Mystics score 15-14 and take a 13 point lead at 51-38 going into the final quarter where they were kept equal at 13 each. Amelia Walmsley was a star for the Pulse with 38 from 38 attempts but her opposite Sophia Lafaiali'i was able to take 45 shots for 44 success. Filda Vui made 10 from 14, although four were two point shots from four attempts

Eli Just was the New Zealand goal scorer against Ivory Coast PHOTO: FIFA + VIDEO The All Whites have held off late attack to shock African champions Ivory Coast 1-0 in the Canadian Shield Tournament in Toronto. The victory is arguably the best result since the 2010 FIFA World Cup and just the third in 19 matches against African opponents. LATEST HEADLINES: Fox joint leader Canadian Open Hurricanes in semifinal defeated Coll ousted in British Open semis Injury-hit Warriors destroy Sharks Kaikoura rider first UCI MTB win Wing Eli Just scored the winning goal just prior to halftime before New Zealand scrapped their way against their classy opponents. EPL player Chris Wood was a substitute off the bench in the 82nd minute to replace striker Kosta Barbarouses as All Whites management seek to control the 33-year-old's workload following a huge season of goal-scoring at Nottingham Forest. Defender Libby Cacace was captain in what was New Zealand's first match since March, when they beat New Caledonia in Auckland for their place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In the first match against world No.41 Ivory Coast, the All Whites at 86th had their first win over a team ranked that high since 2010. Top defending by Finn Surman and centre back Tyler Bindon alongside goalkeeper Max Crocombe kept the All Whites in the game. New Zealand scored through a counter-attacking goal by Austria-based Just in the 41st minute as Marko Stamenic won possession in the middle and picked out Just's run down the right flank. Just's first angled his shot to the far left corner beat goalkeeper Badra Ali Sangare. Ivory Coast coach Emerse Fae introduced a host of leading European players in the second half in the pursuit of goals coming close on severaloccasions through Brighton star winger in the Premier League, Simon Adingra. The only injury concern was an apparent knee problem suffered by Callum McCowatt midway through the first half. He was replaced by Ben Old. New Zealand will play the 25th-ranked Ukrainians on Wednesday morning in Toronto.

Finn Reynolds (left) and James Watt have won their first ATP Challenger Tour doubles title together PHOTO: TIMOTHY BLACK PHOTOGRAPHY The New Zealand pair of Finn Reynolds and James Watt have won the doubles title at the ATP Challenger tournament in Tyler, Texas. They convincingly defeated Alex Martinez from Spain and Colombia’s Soriano Barrera 6-3 6-1 in just 52 minutes. LATEST HEADLINES: NZ All Whites beat Ivory Coast Fox joint leader Canadian Open Hurricanes in semifinal defeated Coll ousted in British Open semis Injury-hit Warriors destroy Sharks It wasn’t until the fifth game that Reynolds and Watt got their first break of serve, but from that moment they took control of the match, allowing their opponents to win just two more games for the remainder of the final. This is the first Challenger title Reynolds and Watt have won together this year, having lost in the final in Morelos, Mexico and Ostrava, Czechia. It wasalso the first Challenger doubles title for Watt and third for Reynolds after two Challenger titles in South America in 2024. As a result of this week’s success, Reynolds is projected to move up to 125 in the world rankings for doubles and Watt to 165, which are career highs for both of them.

The Brumbies forward pack kept the ball tight to beat the Hurricanes PHOTO: SUPER RUGBY PACIFIC Heartache for the Hurricanes as they miss out on the Super Rugby semifinals losing to the ACT Brumbies 35-28 in the playoffs at GIO Stadium in Canberra. The home sides forward pack led by hooker Billy Pollard scoring a double were on fire for most of the match, but now they need to make history by beating the ladder-topping Chiefs in Hamilton next weekend to avoid a fourth straight semi exit against a New Zealand franchise. LATEST HEADLINES: Coll ousted in British Open semis Injury-hit Warriors destroy Sharks Kaikoura rider first UCI MTB win Blues win late v Chiefs, into semis Tactix stay top after win over Steel No Australian side has won a knock-out game in New Zealand in the almost 30-year history of the competition. The Hurricanes opened the scoring through fullback Ruben Love. But then the Brumbies resorted ao maul from a lineout in opposition territory slowly but surely rolled over the tryline, with Pollard the man to dot down through a sea of bodies. Fatafehi Fineanganofo hit back for the visitors before Brumbies captain Allan Alaalatoa burrowed over after a succession of pick-and-drives on the Hurricanes' line. With three minutes left in the first half, the Brumbies opted not to take a penalty goal from right in front, instead chancing their arms again with another lineout. Their gamble paid off with Pollard managing to break off the blindside and dive onto the tryline to give the Brumbies a seven-point lead at the break. The sides traded seven-pointers in the second half, with a try to Brumbies fullback Tom Wright cancelled out by one from Bailyn Sullivan. Veteran Brumbies prop James Slipper scored with another pick-and-drive before Hurricanes substitute Pasilio Tosi narrowed the gap to one try to ramp up the tension in the dying minutes. The Hurricanes burst into the Brumbies half through a Callum Harkin linebreak in the final minute but Luke Reimer stepped up for the home side to steal the ball and settle the victory. The fourth-placed Hurricanes who reached the end of the road in their season. Brumbies 35 (Billy Pollard 2 tries, Allan Alaalatoa, Tom Wright, James Slipper tries; Noah Lolesio 5 con) Hurricanes 28 (Ruben Love, Fehi Fineanganofo, Bailyn Sullivan, Pasilio Tosi tries; Love 4 con). HT: 21-14

Paul Coll plays a backhand in his British Open semifinal loss to Diego Elias PHOTO: PSA SQUASH TOUR New Zealand squash player Paul Coll has been defeated by Peruvian World No.2 Diego Elias in the British Open semifinals in Birmingham. Going into the match, the pair had an 8-8 record against each other, with Elias coming from two games down to beat Coll 3-2 in their last meeting, which was last November in the Singapore Open. LATEST HEADLINES: Injury-hit Warriors destroy Sharks Kaikoura rider first UCI MTB win Blues win late v Chiefs, into semis Tactix stay top after win over Steel Reynolds, Watt in Challenger final On this occasion Elias was a cut above as the pair faced off overnight NZT. The Peruvian’s incredible powers of recovery and deft touches proved too much for Coll to handle. The West Coaster was unable to land his attacking shots as Elias defensive work helped the second seed to a convincing 11-6, 11-9, 11-5 victory in 50 minutes. Elias will face top seed and defending champion Mostafa Asal in the final after the Egyptian came from behind in a bruising encounter with Wales’ Joel Makin. Coll now gets a quick rest before the PSA Squash Tour Finals 23-27 June in Toronto

Blues captain Patrick Tuipulotu and Blues Kurt Eklund after the win during the Super Rugby Pacific Qualifying Final over the Chiefs PHOTO: CRAIG BUTLAND/LINTOTT PHOTOGRAPHY The Blues have left it late to keep their season alive by beating the Chiefs 20-19 in Hamilton to reach the semifinals of Super Rugby It was into injury time that Josh Beehre managed to burrow his way over through the desperate Chiefs defence and for Beauden Barrett to convert for the win. . LATEST HEADLINES: Tactix stay top after win over Steel Reynolds, Watt in Challenger final Walsh wins fifth Diamon League Top rides in MTB downhill qualies Fox targets lead at Canadian Open The result also means the other match between the Brumbies and Hurricanes is now a knockout match, with the winner facing the Chiefs next weekend. The first half was like a test match, but with more mistakes and missed opportunites for primarily the Chiefs to score. Damian McKenzie took the home side to the break 9-3 ahead In front of big and enthusiastic crowd Quinn Tupaea put in another top effort for the Chiefs and even had halfback Cortez Ratima clutching for the ball with the tryline open before he spilled it. Earlier, Caleb Clarke nearly gave the Chiefs a try with a badly-judged quick throw-in over everyone's heads and was eventually fumbled by Etene Nanai-Seturo with the line open. Barrett almost score after a bit of magic but knocked on as ball-to-hand just wouldn't stick anywhere. It wasn't until the 58th that Daniel Rona crossed after a long attacking passage of play. But the Chiefs were never safe as Blues hooker Kurt Eklund dived over 10 minutes later. The Blues kept attacking with a Hoskins Sotutu try ruled out before the defending champions stole the win through Beehee. Blues 20 (Kurt Eklund, Josh Beehre tries; Beauden Barrett 2 con, 2 pen) Chiefs 19 (Daniel Rona try; Damian McKenzie con, 4 pen). HT: 3-9.

James Watt (left) and Finn REynolds are into their third final of the year PHOTO: OSTRAVA OPEN A third ATP Challenger Tour final of 2025 for Finn Reynolds and James Watt, this time at the Tyler Challenger in Texas. The New Zealand pair eased past top seeds George Goldhoff and Trey Hilderbrand 6-2, 6-3 in their semifinal in a match taking one hour and six minutes. LATEST HEADLINES: Walsh wins fifth Diamon League Top rides in MTB downhill qualies Fox targets lead at Canadian Open Coll cruises into British Open semis Crusaders beat Reds to reach semis Reynolds and Watts survived their one break point on their serve and then broke their oppoennts on two of four attempts. as well as winning 17 of 21 points on their own serves. In the final the New Zealand team will face the unseeded pair of Alex Martinez of Spain and Adria Soriano Barrera from Colombia who both have higher rankings. A title win would see Reynolds improve from 147 to around 125 while Watt at 207 could move as high as 160.

New Zealand's Paul Coll plays a backhand in his win over England's Marwan ElShorbagy at the British Open PHOTO: PSA SQUASH TOUR Two-time British Open champion Paul Coll recorded his fourth win in a row against English No.1 Marwan ElShorbagy to set up a semifinal clash with World No.2 Diego Elias. Coll and ElShorbagy had already met four times this season ahead of their quarterfinal, with Marwan winning their first battle at the Egyptian Open only for Coll to win the three since, including in the final of the New Zealand Open in March. LATEST HEADLINES: Crusaders beat Reds to reach semis Kiwi duo continue Challenger form Ryan Fox top-20 round 1 Canadian Open Rob Walter new Black Caps head coach Saints roll; Sharks into top six contention ElShorbagy started the contest brightly, racing into a 7-3 lead in game one as the Englishman picked his shots perfectly, hitting his targets consistently to move within four points of the lead. West Coaster Coll refused to give up any easy points though, upping the physicality as he took control of proceedings. The switch in tactics worked well as ElShorbagy began to make an uncharacteristic number of errors, and Coll took full advantage to rattle off eight points in a row to take an unlikely lead in the contest. From here, it was only one way traffic, with Coll dominating game two 11-4 and then easing past a seemingly disinterested ElShorbagy 11-2 in game three for an eventual score of 11-7, 11-4, 11-2 in 42 minutes. Coll will now face second seed Elias from Peru for a place in the final.

Noah Hotham celebrates scoring with captain David Havili for the Crusaders against the Reds PHOTO: JOE JOHNSON/LINTOTT PHOTOGRAPHY The Crusaders have claimed a 32-12 win over the Reds in the cold in Christchurch scoring five tries to two. It was the 30th home playoffs victory for the Crusaders as they looked the better side from prop Tamaiti Williams scored the second try of the match following his captain Scott Barrett scorring after 16 minutes. LATEST HEADLINES: Kiwi duo continue Challenger form Ryan Fox top-20 round 1 Canadian Open Rob Walter new Black Caps head coach Saints roll; Sharks into top six contention Canes hooker Asafo Aumua out injured Later fullback Will Jordan gave chase to a kick through which almost ended in a try and rattled the Reds defenders. At hafltime the home side led 12-0 and scored through a sensational Noah Hotham try where he burst through close tacklers, chipped ahead and somehow out-ran the defenders to score. Rivez Reihana also added a try as did Kyle Preston just prior to the final whistle. For the Reds there was a token try to hookr Josh Nasser in the 70th minute and then loose forward Fraser McReight three mintues bedore the end of the game. Crusaders 32 (Scott Barrett, Tamaiti Williams; Noah Hotham, Rivez Reihana, Kyle Preston tries; Reihana 2 con, pen Reds 12 (Josh Nasser, Fraser McReight tries; Filipo Daugunu con ). HT: 12-0. Yellow card: Ethan Blackadder (Crusaders, 68min)..

James Watt (pictured) and Finn Reynolds have kept up the good results on the ATP Challenger Tour PHOTO: ATP CHALLENGER TOUR The New Zealand doubles team of Finn Reynolds and James Watt have had another good result on the ATP Challenger Tour in Tyler, Texas. Reynolds who is currentl 147 in the doubles rankings and Watt at 207 are into the semifinals of the US$100,000 tournament. LATEST HEADLINES: Ryan Fox top-20 round 1 Canadian Open Rob Walter new Black Caps head coach Saints roll; Sharks into top six contention Canes hooker Asafo Aumua out injured Paul Coll into British Open quarterfinals In the first round they beat an Australian team in three sets before acocunt foer the Chinese pair of Wang Ao-ran and Zhou Yi 6-3, 6-4, They'll play top seeded Americans George Goldhoff and Trey Hilderbrand for a place in the final. Since teaming up in late March this year the kiwi teams results are; final, semis, quarters, final, first round, quartesr and quarters in consecutive tournaments leading up to Texas.