Challenge riders show way for UCI BMX Racers
- Dave Worsley
- 11 hours ago
- 2 min read
After a successful campaign by New Zealand Challenge riders, it is the turn of the elite kiwi riders to take up the battle at the UCI BMX Racing World Championships in Copenhagen.
The Challenge team earned six medals in their four-days of racing for age group competitors with three gold medals, two silver and a bronze, the best by a New Zealand team in the post-Covid era.
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BMX New Zealand President, Chris Greenough said he was proud with the performances from the Challenge riders.
“We have a great pathway for young riders coming through which has shown our here, and at the same time our adult riders the likes of Toni James and Jeanette Davies, are delivering world class performances,” said Greenough.
“I could not be more delighted for them. This is a truly unique and outstanding sport with riders from eight years to closer to 60 competing this week. It is a sport for families, and for life – a great way for a family The final day of Challenge class competition featured a bronze medal for seasoned Waitakere rider Toni James, who followed up her silver medal in the Cruiser class for women 30-39 years with a bronze in the BMX Racing W3 class.
James was fastest in winning two of her three qualifying motos, and was fastest in the semifinals. From the outside gate, she was edged out of the gate but fought back to finish third, only a fraction of a second from claiming the silver medal.
Meanwhile the elite team completed their final day of practice ahead round one and last chance motos tomorrow. The second day is sudden death racing in quarterfinals, semifinals and finals.
New Zealand is led in the elite men by the North Harbour professional pair of Michael Bias and Rico Bearman, who was sixth in the Grand Final in USA last year.
New to the elite men’s division is Bennett Greenough from Cambridge. He leads the Greenough family from Cambridge who include Lily Greenough, the silver medallist in junior women last year, and on the podium in the recent UCI BMX Racing World Cup.
They are joined by younger brother Jack Greenough in under-23 men who narrowly missed out on the podium last year in the same age group.
Paris Olympian Leila Walker, who had a late start to the year after injury, was seventh in last year’s final, and is joined in the elite competition by Rotorua’s Megan Williams.
Completing the kiwi females is Te Awamutu’s Brooke Penny in the under-23 class while the trio of Finn Cogan (Cambridge), Nicholas Cowie (Southland) and Cooper Richardson (North Harbour) will contest the junior men.
New Zealand Challenge medallists:
Gold: Jeanette Davies (Rotorua) Cruiser class women 40 Plus, Matatini DL Hill (North Harbour) Boys 11 years; Addison Harrowfield (Mountain Raiders), Girls 12 years.
Silver: Jackson Ropati (East City) Boys 10 years; Toni James (Waitakere) Cruiser class women 30-39 years.
Bronze: Toni James (Waitakere) Masters Women