Sam Gaze
New Zealand mountain bike racer

Samuel William Gaze (born 12 December 1995) is a New Zealand cross-country and road cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Alpecin-Premier Tech. He won the under-23 Cross-Country at the 2016 UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships and the 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. He also competes on occasion in road racing events, winning the National Criterium Championships in 2017 and 2018.
01Career
At the Men's cross-country event at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, Gaze won the silver medal behind fellow New Zealand rider Anton Cooper. Gaze was selected ahead of Cooper, who had medical conditions during 2016, to represent New Zealand at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He had two punctures in the Olympic race and his gears failed, and he pulled out when he got lapped.
In March 2018, Gaze became the first New Zealander to win an elite UCI Mountain Bike World Cup title, when he claimed the cross country event in the first round of the season in Stellenbosch, South Africa. In April 2018, Gaze won the gold medal in the cross country event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Despite his win, Gaze came under significant media attention for his perceived unsportsmanlike behaviour towards his compatriot and silver place winner Cooper. Gaze was fined CHF200 by the International Cycling Union for showing Cooper the finger during the race.
In August 2019, Gaze joined UCI WorldTeam Deceuninck-Quick-Step as a stagiaire for the second half of the season. For 2020, Gaze joined the Alpecin-Fenix team to contest road and mountain biking events.
02Personal life
Of Māori descent, Gaze affiliates to the Te Āti Awa iwi.
03Major results
Mountain bike
- 2014
- 2nd Cross-country, Commonwealth Games
- 2015
- 2nd Eliminator, UCI Urban World Championships
- 2016
- 1st Cross-country, National Championships
- 1st Cross-country, UCI World Under-23 Championships
- UCI Under-23 XCO World Cup
- 1st Cairns
- 1st Albstadt
- 3rd La Bresse
- 3rd Lenzerheide
- 2017
- 1st Cross-country, UCI World Under-23 Championships
- 2018
- 1st Cross-country, Commonwealth Games
- UCI XCO World Cup
- 1st Stellenbosch
- UCI XCC World Cup
- 1st Nové Město
- 1st Mont-Sainte-Anne
- 2nd Albstadt
- Copa Catalana Internacional
- 1st Girona
- 2nd Cross-country, Oceania Championships
- 2021
- Swiss Bike Cup
- 1st Basel
- Copa Catalana Internacional
- 1st Girona
- 1st Sittard
- 2022
- UCI World Championships
- 1st Marathon
- 1st Short track
- 1st Cross-country, Commonwealth Games
- UCI XCC World Cup
- 1st Albstadt
- 1st Wijster
- Copa Catalana Internacional
- 2nd Vallnord
- 2023
- UCI World Championships
- 1st Short track
- 2nd Cross-country
- XCO French Cup
- 1st Guéret
- 2nd Marseille-Luminy
- Shimano Super Cup
- 1st La Nucia
- XCC French Cup
- 1st Guéret
- UCI XCC World Cup
- 2nd Nové Město
- 2024
- UCI XCC World Cup
- 1st Mairiporã
- 1st Val di Sole
- 3rd Les Gets
Road
- 2017
- 1st National Criterium Championships
- 4th Time trial, National Under-23 Championships
- 2018
- 1st National Criterium Championships
- 10th Road race, Commonwealth Games
Grand Tour general classification results timeline
| Grand Tour | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Giro d'Italia | , |
| Tour de France | , |
| Vuelta a España | DNF |
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sam Gaze”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Sam Gaze 38642.jpg by Kim Harwood, CC BY-SA 2.0
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