BMX freestyle made its debut at the Olympics and the finals didn't disappoint. American Hannah Roberts entered the event as the favorite. Roberts had an impressive first run that set the tone for the field's second run, with a score of 96.10. Despite the impressive run by Roberts, Great Britain's Charlotte Worthington put together a show-stopping final run that clinched the first ever gold medal in BMX freestyle.
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Nine riders entered the final looking to medal. Unlike the seeding round, where both runs were averaged. Riders only needed one good run that would count for their score in the event.
Roberts had to wait for her eight competitors to ride first, but it was worth the wait. The 19 year old wasted no time. She started with a with a 360 bar spin then a tail whip to start with a bang. She then added a back flip bar spin and remained clean throughout her whole ride with a great amount of speed. The judges acknowledged the difficulty, giving her a 96.10, the highest score given in the two days of competition so far and close to seven points higher than anyone else.
Entering her final ride, Worthington was in last place after crashing. She had attempted to land the first ever 360 backflip by a woman in competition. She literally had nothing to lose and it was reflected in her run. She landed trick after trick -- including the backflip. It was undeniable how good her run was and after a long wait the judges rewarded her with a score of 97.50, taking her from last to first in the standings.
Going into her final run, Perris Benegas sat in 5th place and needed better than a 89.2 to reach the podium. She packed in trick after trick in her final run, including a suicide no hander, clean 360s, among her impressive combinations. Ultimately, it wasn't enough as she came up just short with an 88.50, moving her into fourth place.
Swiss rider Nikita Ducarroz had a solid first run, looking effortless. The judges rewarded her with a score of 89.2 that was good enough to stand for the bronze after Benegas came up just short.
With the podium all but settled, all that remained was Roberts' final run to determine who would win what color medal. In a shocking move, Roberts came off her pedals and called it. Roberts won silver and Worthington the gold.Â
Charlotte Worthington of Team Great Britain competes in the during the Women's Park Final, run 2 of the BMX Freestyle on day nine of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Urban Sports Park on August 01, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
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