Day seven of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games hosted the Men’s and Women’s BMX Racing Quarterfinals where Cameron Wood (Bozeman, Mont.; Mongoose/USA BMX Foundation), Kamren Larsen (Bakersfield, Calif.; Factory SSquared/Answer), Alise Willoughby (Saint Cloud, Minn.; Team Toyota/ Daylight Cycle Co.), Daleny Vaughn (Tucson, Ariz.; Biolab Sciences/ DK Bicycles), and Felicia Stancil (Lake Villa, Ill.; Factory SSquared/Answer) represented the United States. Riders had three opportunities to put down their best runs in the quarterfinals. Athletes ranked in the top 12 after three runs qualified for tomorrow's events. Riders ranked 13-20 after three runs qualified for the Last Chance Race (LCR). Athletes that did not make it out of the LCR were eliminated.
Twenty-four athletes from around the world lined up in their respective heats to compete for a chance to make it into the semifinals.
Larsen was the first athlete to go for Team USA. In his first heat, he rolled across the line in third. In the second run, he bettered his position by one, crossing the line in second. In his final run, he placed second again, giving him an overall score of seven, which solidified his placement in tomorrow’s events.
Larsen had been feeling the pressure leading up to the Games but was pleased with his performance. “I came here to try and enjoy the experience. Obviously with Alise and Connor from the past bringing home medals, there is a lot of pressure, especially being from the United States. Myself and the other Cam are doing what we can do. We both qualified for tomorrow, so step one of the plan is done.”
Wood also had a strong night of racing. He quickly pulled away from all seven riders in his first run, claiming the first American victory of the night. He finished the next run in second just behind Alfredo Campo (ECU) and wrapped up his third run in fourth. Like Larsen, he ended the night with seven points and qualified for tomorrow's semifinals.
The luck of the draw had all three American women racing together in the second heat of the first run. Team USA showed strength right out of the gate with Willoughby and Vaughn crossing the line in first and second, respectively, and Stancil 1.633 seconds behind Vaughn in fifth. Willoughby also claimed victory in runs two and three, finishing the quarterfinals undefeated.
Despite coming out on top in the quarterfinals, the Rio silver medalist and four-time Olympian didn’t let the day’s success get to her head. "It's anybody's game,” said Willoughby after wrapping up her third run. “It’s always going to come down to who shows up in the moment on the day.”
Vaughn will join Willoughby in the semifinals after finishing her second and third rounds of racing in fourth and second place, respectively.
“I couldn’t be any more excited,” said Vaughn when asked about her experience in the quarterfinals. “The crowd’s electric, the atmosphere’s amazing, and I’m beyond excited for day two.”
2022 World Champion Stancil struggled to find her flow today finishing her first run in fifth place. In her second and third runs, she finished eighth and seventh place, respectively, ultimately not advancing to the next round, ending her run at Paris 2024.
Racing continues tomorrow at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines BMX stadium with four Americans heading to the semi-finals for Team USA.
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