Hills made his Paralympic debut five years ago and was the first-ever Paralympian from the country to compete on a trike - finishing eighth in both the road time trial and the road race.

Hills went on to win two medals at the 2017 Para Cycling Road World Championships - one silver and one bronze - and a bronze at the 2019 edition.

"It is a real honour to be selected to represent New Zealand at my second Paralympic Games," Hills said.

"This year has been one of intensive preparation through national competitions and training camps.

"I'm looking forward to representing my country again on the world stage."

Also on the team are Sarah Ellington, Eltje Malzbender, Rory Mead, Nicole Murray and Anna Taylor.

All five are set to make their Paralympic debuts in Tokyo.

The athletes have been attending a heat-acclimatisation camp at the Adams Centre in Mount Maunganui, where they were told their Paralympic places had been confirmed.

Ellington made her Para cycling debut in 2017 and has gone on to win three World Championship medals.

Malzbender is set to be the first New Zealand female Paralympic trike cyclist and will be one of the favourites in Tokyo, having won two world titles at the 2019 World Championships.

Mead debuted for New Zealand at the 2018 Road World Championships, where he was fourth in the time trial and fifth in the road race, while Murray made her debut at the 2018 Track World Championships, winning a silver medal.

Taylor made her debut at the 2019 Track World Championships and was selected for the high-performance squad after impressive showings at World Cup events.

"It is fantastic to announce our sixth group of Para-athletes selected to represent New Zealand at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games today," said Paralympics New Zealand (PNZ) chief executive Fiona Allan.

"Stevo, Sarah, Eltje, Rory, Nicole and Anna will be looking to continue the legacy of previous Paralympians that have competed in New Zealand Paralympic teams across five Paralympic Games since Sydney 2000 and PNZ wishes them all the very best in their final preparations."