UCI Elite Men ranking as of 28 July 2015.
1 (1) Sam WILLOUGHBY Australia 24 1022
2 (2) Connor FIELDS United States 23 1010
3 (5) Liam PHILLIPS Great Britain 26 1004
4 (24) Niek KIMMANN Netherlands 19 993
5 (4) Jelle VAN GORKOM Netherlands 24 987
6 (8) Carlos Mario OQUENDO ZABALA Colombia 28 930
7 (3) Joris DAUDET France 24 905
8 (15) Twan VAN GENDT Netherlands 23 885
9 (6) Renato REZENDE Brazil 24 770
10 (12) Anthony DEAN Australia 24 769
11 (9) Nicholas LONG United States 26 735
12 (13) Justin POSEY United States 22 705
13 (29) Raymon VAN DER BIEZEN Netherlands 28 670
14 (16) Bodi TURNER Australia 21 651
15 (7) Corben SHARRAH United States 23 650
16 (22) Jared GARCIA United States 23 635
17 (14) David HERMAN United States 27 635
18 (28) David GRAF Switzerland 26 630
2015 UCI BMX World Championships ended. ProTracks had the opportunity to be the official designer and builder of the track on which more than 3,300 riders proudly defended their country's colors in this top-level competition. The design / building of this track took more than two years of an intensive work closely with the organizer and more specifically Gil de Vis, the Belgium National coach Chris Jacobs, and the Zolder BMX Club which owns now every conditions to rise on the international stage.
Australian golden girl Caroline Buchanan has won the silver medal in the elite women’s event on a rain and windswept track at the UCI BMX World Championships in Zolder, Belgium on Saturday. Buchanan stayed upright in a wild women’s final but Australia’s elite men were not as lucky, Olympic silver medallist and defending world champion Sam Willoughby taken out by Swiss rider David Graf at the head of the field in a men’s final where compatriot Anthony Dean also hit the bitumen.
Deposed champion Sam Willoughby has declared his Rio Olympic campaign on track despite crashing out of yesterday’s BMX world championship final on a dramatic day in Zolder, Belgium. Racing in driving rain and strong winds, Willoughby was leading the field through the second turn in his title defence when he was controversially forced off the track and out of the final by Swiss rider David Graf.
The event had been thrown into chaos when a serious weather warning led officials to make major changes to the format and schedule of competition, including the decision to start all events from the 5m start hill used by the age group challenge classes instead of the elite 8m supercross start hill.
The altered schedule saw riders hit the wet track in a condensed helter skelter program that put immense pressure on the riders. Fellow Australian Olympian and former world champion Caroline Buchanan was drawn to describe the day as ‘crazy, something we’ve never seen before at this level’.
Last week saw the complete Haro UK Race Team head to Zolder, Belgium to take part in the World Championships. There was a total of 3133 riders from 47 countries. Mark Fletcher, Lewis Hipkins Emily Green, Eddie Moore and Josh Moore made it through to the later qualifying stages but couldn?t progress any further mainly due to crashes. Three riders made it through to the main event which would mean they were presented with a world placing!
BMX star Caroline Buchanan says the wild weather that she and Australia’s other riders faced at the weekend’s world championships in Zolder, Belgium may be the perfect preparation for next year’s Rio Olympic Games. The world championships’ final day at the outdoor track, set within the confines of the former F1 circuit in Zolder, was marred by a serious weather warning that led officials to make major changes to the format and schedule of competition.
Those changes included bringing the racing forward almost five hours and the decision to start all events from the 5m start hill used by the age group challenge classes instead of the elite 8m supercross start hill.
The altered schedule saw competitors hit the wet track in a condensed helter skelter program that put immense pressure on the riders, something Buchanan says is a possibility in Rio or at several of the important lead up events that are at the mercy of the weather over the next 12 months.
Elite Men:
1 KIMMANN Niek NED19960520 33.386
2 VAN GORKOM Jelle NED19910105 33.753
3 GRAF David SUI19890908 33.817
4 OQUENDO ZABALA Carlos Mario COL19871116 34.082
5 PHILLIPS Liam GBR19890311 34.535
6 VAN DER BIEZEN Raymon NED19870114 34.749
7 WILLOUGHBY Sam AUS19910815 DNF
8 DEAN Anthony AUS19910422 DNF
Elite Women:
1 HERNANDEZ Stefany VEN19910615 37.530
2 BUCHANAN Caroline AUS19901024 38.745
3 CHRISTENSEN Simone DEN19940210 39.068
4 CRAIN Brooke USA19930429 39.102
5 SMULDERS Laura NED19931209 39.643
6 HLADIKOVA Aneta CZE19840830 39.696
7 STANCIL Felicia USA19950518 44.400
8 POST Alise USA19910117 1:19.599