Paris 2024 Cycling: All results, as Deng Yawen dominates women's BMX freestyle park competition
The atmosphere was electric at Place de la Concorde in Paris as the women’s cycling BMX freestyle event unfolded on July 31, 2024.
The excitement culminated in a historic Paris 2024 victory for the People's Republic of China's Deng Yawen, who clinched the first medal of any color for China in a freestyle women's park.
Deng set the bar high with her first run, executing a series of impressive tricks that scored 92.5. She immediately took a comfortable lead, the only rider to score above 90 in the first run.
But she did not stop there.
But Deng wasn’t finished. Determined to leave no room for doubt, she delivered an even more polished and confident performance in her second run, scoring 92.6—the highest score of the event. Her two runs held the top spots on the leaderboard, ensuring her gold medal victory.
"After the first run, I was on top, which boosted my confidence and pushed me to elevate my performance in the second run,” the Olympic champion reflected after her win.
USA’s Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Hannah Roberts started strong but fell on a front-flip attempt during her first run. Teammate Perris Benegas, who narrowly missed the podium in Tokyo, hoped to challenge Deng’s lead and scored 83.4 on her first run, putting her in third place behind Australia’s Natalya Diehm.
Benegas bounced back with a second-run score of 90.7, moving her into second place. But Roberts, with one final run to go, fell again.
Benegas was visibly elated with her silver medal, stating, “I’m speechless, it hasn’t even set in yet. I’m just over the moon. It’s just the best run counts, so there’s everything to win, nothing to lose. I just told myself, 'Let’s go'.”
Meanwhile, Australia's Natalya Diehm did what Roberts couldn't today and landed the only front flip of the competition. The judges rewarded her for the trick with a bronze medal, marking Australia's first medal in this event.
Cycling: Women's BMX freestyle podium
Gold: Deng Yawen, People's Republic of China
Silver: Perris Benegas, United States of America
Bronze: Natalya Diehm, Australia
See all the results on Olympics.com
PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 31: Yawen Deng of Team People's Republic of China competes during the BMX Freestyle Women's Park Final - Round 2 on day five of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Place de la Concorde on July 31, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images)