National criterium champion Mike Northey has been added to the New Zealand road race team for the Commonwealth Games.
The 27-year-old is currently racing for crack English-based UCI Continental team Madison-Genesis, alongside fellow Kiwi and Commonwealth Games rider, Tom Scully.
Northey will join current Tour de France riders Jack Bauer and Greg Henderson and their fellow World Tour professional Jesse Sergent in the team for the road race on the final day of the Games on 3 August.
The remaining two places in the road team will be selected from the endurance track squad.
BikeNZ High Performance Director, Mark Elliott, said Northey is a well-proven road rider in good form this year.
Mike is a talented rider and has earned some good results over the last two years in Europe, Elliott said. He is riding well again this year and has been singled out by some of our top pros.
Likewise we have some excellent road racers in the track team. We will make the decision closer to the time on which of the track riders are in the best form but we are confident whoever is selected will be more than capable of carrying out an important support job for Jack Bauer and Greg Henderson.
Three original team members have withdrawn, with Hayden Roulston injured and both James Oram and George Bennett selected by their professional teams for major races at the same time as the Commonwealth Games.