Logan Martin, the BMX Freestyle King: “Although I’m thirty years old, I feel like I’m at my best”
For BMX Freestyle racer Logan Martin, the distinction between work and play is hazy, which is precisely why he has remained at the top for so long.
The Australian has an unparalleled resume to date, having won five X Games crowns, two world championships, and the first Olympic gold medal.
Martin is more driven than ever to defend his Olympic crown in Paris in 2024, even though he has already achieved every possible feat in the sport.
It’s one of those sports that I play both as a career and a passion. I genuinely do it every single day.
Olympic champion Logan Martin leaves, but he has high hopes for Paris 2024, particularly given its location.
Logan Martin, the winner of Tokyo 2020, is relieved that Budapest will not host the next Olympic Games.
The Australian BMX rider’s two worst performances in his career were in the Hungarian capital when he failed to make it to the final. His second appearance came on Friday, June 21st during the Olympic Qualifier Series (OQS), where he placed 17th in the men’s BMX Freestyle Park qualifier.
Martin fell in the last seconds but scored 69.92 on his first run. On the same course feature in the second run, he scored 72.16 points but made another error.
“I’m really disappointed,” the Olympian remarked afterwards. It’s undoubtedly not what I had in mind.
“I was aware of my errors. I knew what had to be done. In practice, I was getting it flawlessly. In practice, it felt fantastic. I simply made a mistake in my initial attempt. I didn’t even consider the possibility that it would occur again. Simply put, I didn’t do it correctly. I repeated the identical action again, but I didn’t let the first run consume me. I was attempting to regroup and refocus for the upcoming run. I knew that with a strong second run, I could have still advanced to the championship.”
Martin finished five spots short of the final cut-off after encountering the same trouble spot in the second run.
His second-place finish at the Shanghai Olympic Qualifier Series stage earned him 45 points. But those points, along with the 24 he will receive from Budapest, won’t be sufficient to guarantee him an Olympic quota through the OQS*. Instead, the Australian stated that he is confident in Oceania’s ability to defend its crown in Paris in 2024 and is counting on the continental quota.
I achieved some excellent outcomes. Sadly, this one wasn’t,” Martin remarked. “It’s never nice, the one right before the Olympics but I’ll go home, I’ll prepare well, and I’ll go into the Olympics confident.”
Luckily for him, the Olympic Qualifier Series host city will not be the site of those Olympics.
He laughed and replied, “Definitely stoked it’s not in Budapest.” That’s actually one of my favorite spots to visit, so it’s insane. I’m here for the third time. I think I’m just taking in too much of the city and losing focus.”
Olympic schedule for BMX racing: Paris timings for the sprint and freestyle events
BMX racing will be added to the Olympic program for the fifth time, in 2024, in Paris. Tokyo has added a new event to its calendar: freestyle BMX racing, where riders compete in an urban park and receive points for their tricks. Hannah Roberts of Team USA took home the silver medal in that competition and is back this year.
There are eight contestants in the men’s and women’s sprint racing categories. British cyclist Beth Shriever won the women’s competition at the Tokyo Olympics, while Niek Kimmann of the Netherlands won the men’s competition. Australian rider Logan Martin is the reigning men’s gold medallist in the freestyle racing event, while British rider Charlotte Worthington is the reigning women’s gold medallist.
