BMX at the Paris 2024 Olympics
- Published
BMX is split into two events at the Olympics. BMX racing made its debut at the 2008 Beijing Games, while BMX freestyle was introduced at Tokyo 2020.
Here is all you need to know about the sport at Paris 2024.
BMX schedule and venue at Paris 2024
The BMX racing events take place on 1 and 2 August at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines BMX Stadium, which is approximately 36km (22 miles) from central Paris to the west. The venue is situated next to the velodrome which hosts the track cycling.
There are two gold medals available in BMX racing - a men's and a women's - with both finals taking place on 2 August.
The BMX freestyle events take place at the Place de la Concorde in central Paris from 30 to 31 July.
There are two gold medals available in BMX freestyle, with the men's and women's finals scheduled for 31 July.
Scoring and rules in BMX racing
In BMX racing, six riders at a time race around a track approximately 400m long which contains jumps and other obstacles.
Riders race three times in the heats and are assigned points after each run based on their finishing order - one point for first place, two for second and so on - with the aim to get the fewest points possible.
The top 12 riders with the lowest points advance to the semi-finals, with the rest competing in a last-chance qualifier where the top four advance to the semi-final.
The semi-final is also raced in three heats and the eight riders with the lowest point totals advance to the final, which is a one-off race.
Scoring and rules in BMX freestyle
In BMX freestyle athletes ride round a course with ramps, box jumps and walls and must showcase their best tricks in two 60-second runs to qualify for the final.
An average score of both runs is taken in the qualifying round, where nine out of 12 riders progress to the final.
The nine finalists again complete two runs but this time their best score of the two is taken.
Five judges score points between 0.00 and 99.99 based on difficulty, originality, execution, height and creativity.
Who has won the most medals in Olympic BMX?
In men's BMX racing Latvian rider Maris Strombergs is the most successful with two Olympic gold medals, while the Netherlands' Niek Kimmann and the United States' Connor Fields have won one gold each.
In the women's event, Colombia's Mariana Pajon is a two-time Olympic champion, while France's Anne-Caroline Chausson has one gold and Great Britain's Bethany Shriever is the defending Olympic champion.
Australian Logan Martin was the first men's Olympic BMX freestyle champion, while Team GB's Charlotte Worthington became the first woman to win freestyle gold.
Team GB Olympic BMX riders at Paris 2024
Kieran Reilly - BMX freestyle park
Charlotte Worthington - BMX freestyle park
Kye Whyte - BMX racing
Beth Shriever - BMX racing
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