World No8 Dan McConnell and former world No1-ranked under-23 rider Rebecca Henderson lead a powerful Australian cross-country contingent crossing the Tasman for the championships at the Queenstown Bike Park, at Skyline.
Both Australians will defend their Oceania honours won in Queensland last year. McConnell, who has been as high as No5 in the world over cross-country, will be looking to make it three Oceania titles in a row.
The men's cross-country showdown should be a massive race. Waikato's Sam Gaze won the national championship ahead of under-23 world champion Anton Cooper in Wanaka last weekend.
The pair will resume battle, with McConnell thrown into the mix. The last time the trio were at the head of a race was the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014, when Cooper prevailed over Gaze and McConnell.
While the Continental title is a rewarding trophy for the mantelpiece, for both Gaze and Cooper it is the battle within a battle as they eye the probable one spot available for the Rio Olympics.
Queenstown's Kate Fluker gets to compete on home turf this weekend as she chases her first Oceania honours. She will gain a good measure on her early season progress when she takes on Henderson, who has been in sparkling early season form with four wins in the Australian national series and the national championship.
There is also a smattering of national champions from both sides of the Tasman set to do battle in the other age groups, which has also attracted riders from throughout the Oceania region, including Guam and Tahiti.
The championships begin with the downhill competition today, where Hawkes Bay professional George Brannigan will be hot favourite after a crash last weekend ruled him out of competing in Wanaka.
Central Otago rider Alanna Columb will be looking to continue her strong start to the season after defending her national title in Wanaka last weekend.
Columb pushed into the top 12 riders in the world last year and will chase the continental title as she looks to compete in the full World Cup season in Europe this year.
The championships, part of the annual Queenstown Bike Festival, has downhill racing from 1pm today. The cross-country racing is tomorrow. Age group men and masters start at 9am, women (elite, under-23 and junior) at 11am and the men (elite, under-23 and junior) at 1.30pm.
