At the Specialized Kārearea Downhill, Australian rider Luke Meier-Smith claimed victory, but Canadian riders were among the best riders in the finals. Dane Jewett stormed onto the podium with a second place finish.

The race dropped riders more than 300 vertical metres down Skyline Rotorua on a track that evolved dramatically over the week. Early rain left the course slick and unpredictable but by finals  the dirt had transformed into an off camber, rough looking track overlooking Lake Rotorua.

When everyone had dropped in, it was a young Australian and a Canadian challenger battling for the win.

Jewett delivers

Jewett entered the finals with momentum after qualifying second in his seeding run.

The Canadian backed that performance up when it counted.

Dropping into the course ahead of the final rider, Jewett laid down a 3:01.080, taking over the hot seat. His run was flawless, pedaling in the air and aggressive in all the right places. The Giant Factory Off-Road Team set the run to beat.

His run ultimately stood up for second place, only falling to team mate Meier-Smith’s winning time of 2:59.445.

For Jewett, it was a major performance that puts him into fifth position overall for the season, even without hitting the Christchurch stop of the series.

Local favourite Tuhoto-Ariki Pene thrilled the home crowd by finishing just 0.346 seconds behind the Canadian to claim third place.

American Richie Rude finished fourth while New Zealand’s Tyler Waite rounded out the top five.

Canadian depth in the field

Beyond Jewett’s podium, Canada was well represented throughout the Rotorua start list.

Canadian riders in the finals included Michael Delesalle (who took 8th place), Tegan Cruz (who 16th) and Jake Polito (18th).

Hastings continues Rotorua dominance

The women’s race once again belonged to New Zealand’s Jenna Hastings.

Hastings delivered a confident run on her home track, to defend her Kārearea Downhill title and extend a Crankworx winning streak that stretches back to 2023.

Britain’s Louise Ferguson finished second while rising New Zealand talent Kate Hastings (Jenna’s younger sister) rounded out the podium.

Crankworx weekend continues

If you want to catch more of the festival, tonight at 5 PM (EDT) is the Crankworx Slopestyle in Memory of McGazza, the second stop of the Slopestyle Super League. You can watch it here.