Wanaka teenager Carter Guichard has edged out Tour of Southland veteran Matt Zenovich to become the overall winner of this year's Milford Mountain Classic (MMC), held on Saturday (18 Feb).

Milford Mountain Classic winner Carter Guichard. Photo: Facebook

The 120km scenic cycle race from Milford Sound to Te Anau saw MMC first timer Guichard beat Zenovich by just 2 seconds, finishing in a time of 3:13:33.

The win scored Guichard both the overall and Junior Under 19 titles.

Race director Matt Sillars said Guichard was amazing.

"He's the first New Zealand cyclist to get a Junior World Tour contract with [prestigious French cycling team] AG2R Citroen."

Guichard is part of a Southern development squad of riders, whose members come from both Central Otago and Southland, he said.

Sillars said with three of the under 19s in the top five [placegetters], it was looking great for the sport.

This years iconic cycle race saw numbers drop by a third on previous years, with just 125 of the usual 200 starters.

Sillars blamed the reduced numbers on three years of race postponements due to the Covid pandemic and "unfortunate timing with Covid roaming around and the [North Island] floods."

"I think people just didn't have the confidence to book early," he said.

Three Auckland friends on their final approach to the Milford Mountain Classic finish line. Photo: Bill Jarvie

However Sillars said he was pleased with the way the race had gone, saying one of his highlights was seeing three female friends from Auckland complete the race.

While they were last to finish, it was great watching them looking after each other. They were together all the way, he said

Sillars said organisers had magnificent support from "40-odd" locals and volunteers and "fantastic comms from the Milford Road Downer guys".