Anton Cooper
Age: 27
Born: August 11, 1994 at Christchurch
Height: 1.67m
Event: Mountain bike cross-country
Coach: David Plew
Previous Commonwealth Games: Glasgow 2014 (gold), Gold Coast 2018 (silver)
Copper will pursue his third straight Commonwealth Games medal at Birmingham, after taking gold at Glasgow and silver at Gold Coast.
The former world junior and U23 champion was deprived a place at the 2012 London Olympics, because he did not reach the minimum age of 19, and then missed selection for Rio 2016, when he developed chronic fatigue syndrome.
His 2017 campaign face possible disaster, when he was evacuated from his home during the Port Hills fires, but police allowed him through the cordon to retrieve his gear to contest the national championships.
At the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Cooper and teammate Sam Gaze clashed, when Gaze punctured late in the race and accused his rival to taking unfair advantage. Gaze ultimately won the race, reversing their one-two finish four years earlier at Glasgow.
Cooper has won nine national titles and six Oceania crowns, and finished sixth at the Tokyo Olympics, just 12 seconds off the podium. He is currently ranked 12th in the world, behind Commonwealth rival Alan Hatherly (fifth) from South Africa.
