Best of British: What have Beth Shriever and Kye Whyte been doing since making BMX Racing history at Tokyo 2020?
"I’ll be honest, me being where I’m from I’ll never ever would’ve thought I would step foot past the gates of Buckingham Palace let alone meet the KING," posted an incredulous Kye Whyte, the first British BMX racer ever to claim an Olympic medal with silver at Tokyo 2020.
"I met the King," said an equally astounded Bethany Shriever, who was crowned Olympic champion in the women's discipline just minutes later. "I shook the King's hand."
The extraordinary experience in November 2022 was courtesy of a reception hosted for Team GB at Buckingham Palace to celebrate medal successes at the Olympic Games in Japan in 2021 and the Winter Olympic Games Beijing 2022.
More out-of-this-world moments plus inevitable challenges of life have been sandwiched between the two Olympic Games, with Paris 2024 starting 26 July, for the long-time friends.
So ahead of the 2024 UCI BMX Racing World Championships that start in Rock Hill, South Carolina on 17 May, the last major event before the XXXIII Olympiad, Olympics.com takes a look at what the pair have been doing in the two-and-a-half years since winning their history-making medals.
BMX Brits living the high life
Back to the royal visit, where the twosome who have known each other since they were kids mingled with fellow GB athletes who had been invited to Buckingham Palace to celebrate the achievements in the particularly challenging environs of Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022, both Olympic Games necessarily muted due to the COVD-19 pandemic.
The pair got spruced up and enjoyed the privilege of mingling with King Charles and their fellow Olympian Princess Anne.
The Prince of Peckham should have felt right at home considering the moniker given to him since the Games in Japan but the royal residence is a long way from the area of south London from which Whyte emerged.
"Young kids|teenagers," Whyte wrote on Instagram of the out-of-this-world encounter, "chase your dreams and live life to the fullest because that’s a moment that will never be forgotten and it goes to show no matter how you grew up, where you’re from you can make something out of your life."
“If you had told me before we flew out to Tokyo that I’d end up in Buckingham Palace with an Olympic gold to my name I’m not sure I would have believed you," said Shriever. "The whole experience was a dream and this is another of those experiences that makes me feel so lucky to be doing what I do, and even more determined to bring everything I have to Paris 2024.”
A visit to the Royal Box at Wimbledon for the now traditional Team GB invitation day added to the red carpet treatment. Shriever was also a Bond girl for the evening after being invited to the premier of No Time to Die. Whyte donned sequins as a celebrity competitor on Dancing on Ice, reaching the semi-finals.
So, the fun times surrounding being Olympic medallists took them far and away from training and competition bubbles, but still living a life less ordinary.
But spending precious time at home with family and friends and giving back to the cycling community and sport they both love so much, was a key part of being Olympic medallists, too.
Giving back to their BMX communities
On International Women's Day (IWD) on 8 March, Shriever joined Jessica Ennis-Hill, Olympic gold medallist and three-time world heptathlon champion for a run as part of the Laureus Academy supported programme, The Running Charity. The pair saw for themselves how young people affected by homelessness and complex needs are encouraged to harness the benefits of running and fitness to help transform their lives.
The 2022 Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award winner also teamed up with GirlGuiding, the UK's largest youth organisation dedicated to girls.
"I was a young girl when I started BMX racing," said Shriever in a video promoting the organisation on IWD. "It was, and still is, a highly male-dominated sport but I didn't let that stop me. I gave it a go and I've gained so much confidence over the years. I've met so many new people, created so many amazing memories. So if you're thinking about starting something new, go for it and give it everything. Girls can do anything."
Whyte, meanwhile, is part of the Whyte Bros project, set up by brother and former world number three, Tre, and joined by dad Nigel, and older sibling Daniel, all BMXers.
"Whyte Bros are for any young person who either wants to try a new sport, make friends or are facing challenges in their lives," explains the website. "The sport of BMX offers so much more than just learning the skills to ride a bike and learn a trick of two. It is a vehicle to gain independence, to have freedom, to experience the outdoors and feel part of a family, a team where you can belong."
Of course, winning Olympic medals is the biggest inspiration to their communities of all.
At 5am UK time on Friday 30 July 2021, the members of Peckham BMX Club, crowded around a big screen to watch the BMX medal races live from Japan.
The ensuing madness of his community watching Whyte claim silver was captured and shared on a social media post, and TV, with one person frantically imploring: "Don't swear! It's live on TV."
"It’s a loud video," posts Whyte in the text accompanying the video. "I have never shared this before, but this was a love reaction of me getting my silver medal last year in Tokyo from family, friends and support from the kids @peckhambmxclub and this brings a happy tear of joy to my face. It was also 5-6 am in the morning so for them to have that energy was crazy."
Weeks after winning Olympic gold, Shriever also claimed the world title for the first time. The following year she won the European title to become the first BMX racing cyclist in history to hold all three titles simultaneously.
The second world title came in 2023, at a home championships in Glasgow, in which an emotional Shriever could finally reach the pinnacle of her sport in front of home fans.
"WORLD CHAMPION!!!🌈🌈🌈in front of a home crowd, my family, this means more than anyone could know!"
Shriever recently claimed top spot on a modified track in Paris, with Whyte flying until a crash put him out of contention for the final.
But since winning their medals, Britain's BMX royalty have been on a rollercoaster of a trajectory toward an Olympic title defence for Shriever, and matching or improving the silver won by Whyte. As Whyte put it after claiming the first BMX Racing Olympic medal in British history:
"OLYMPICS Thank you I went with targets of getting BMX on the map and getting our first medal I promised a lot of people something special to bring home and I did. BRITISH BMX has never been better."
Quite.