It will be the battle of the super women in the Motatapu marathon tomorrow. Defending champion Sarah Coghlan, of Queenstown, will be challenged by Dunedin dentist Victoria Beck.
Coghlan (26) won the event last year in a record time of 3hr 19min 48sec but Beck pushed her back to third when she won the Kepler Challenge in December.
Coghlan was formerly a champion middle-distance runner. She came third in the New Zealand cross-country championships nine years ago and then went to the United States on a running scholarship.
Beck (29), who won the Kepler Challenge in 5hr 51min 28sec in her first attempt, is a successful duathlete and has competed in Europe.
The switch back to long-distance running came when she finished eighth in the Hong Kong marathon last year.
The intense battle between the pair could result in the women's record being lowered.
Vanessa Gray (Dunedin), who finished sixth two years ago, has returned after missing last year's race because of a stress fracture in her foot.
Other contenders for the minor places include Laura Andrews (Dunedin), Kate Fairbairn (Otautau) and Nicolette Hinson (Sydney).
Vajin Armstrong (Christchurch), who won the men's race by 11min last year, should have no difficulty in winning again.
Contenders for the minor placings include Adrian Boyd (Perth), Aaron Davies (Sydney), Sean Ireland (New South Wales), Adam Keen (Dunedin) and Geoffrey Palmer (Ottawa).
The established Motatapu 47km mountain bike race and companion off-road running marathon of 42.2km share a course from Lake Wanaka to Arrowtown.
Kate Fluker (Queenstown), who won last year's event in 2hr 23min 23sec, is expected to win the women's mountain bike title again.
Alex Dodds (Wanaka), an experienced mountain biker, should win the men's race.
A total of 2104 competitors will be competing in the five separate events at the Motatapu. There are a record 1264 athletes in the running disciplines.
There is also a shorter 15km run over the Motatapu Miners Trail, and the two-person team event, which was introduced two years ago and follows a different, more challenging 49km route over the Doc Motatapu track.
It is not a relay and both runners must complete the course. The course features four major climbs totalling 2790 vertical metres and follows a marked track that will test the navigation skills and pace judgement of the runners.
A triathlon, being held for the second time, will begin with a 5km swim at Glendhu Bay before the 47km mountain bike ride from Glendhu Bay to Arrowtown through three high country stations, and ends with a 15km mountain run over the Miner's Trail.
Motatapu
The facts
First race: 2005.
Distances: Mountain bike 47km, marathon run 42.2km, miners trail run 15km, two-person run 49km, triathlon 5km swim, 47km mountain bike, 15km run.
Records: Mountain bike, Marcus Roy, 1hr 57min 47sec (men); Kath Kelly, 2hr 20min 05sec (women).
Run: John Winsbury, 2hr 38min 13sec (men); Sarah Coghlan, 3hr19min 48sec.
