Kennett revels in night of stars

Waimate cyclist Dylan Kennett missed out in the "Emerging Talent" category of the 50th Westpac Halberg Awards held in Auckland on Thursday night.

Kennett was in illustrious company with Andrew McKenzie (sailing), Lydia Ko (golf) and Anton Cooper (mountain biking).

The 18-year-old performed well at his first UCI World Cup in Scotland in November, finishing fourth in the 4000m individual pursuit in an impressive 4m 28.128s.

But it wasn't enough to bring the coveted award home, with teen golfing sensation Lydia Ko taking the top prize.

Kennett said he was happy to have been nominated and enjoyed the event despite not winning the award.

"I was just happy to be there and wasn't expecting to win," he said.

"It was a great night, I was on the same table as Hamish Bond and Eric Murray, which was pretty cool."