Paris 2024 Olympics: France celebrates golden night with historic 1-2-3 sweep in men's BMX racing final
When Emmanuel Macron, president of France, arrived for the Cycling BMX Racing men’s final on Friday night 2 August, the stakes skyrocketed through the roof of the SQY BMX Stadium.
He had made the 23km journey over from the Paris La Defense Arena, not long after home hero Leon Marchand had won his fourth gold medal of Paris 2024 in the swimming men’s 200m individual medley final.
Earlier on at the Champ-de-Mars Arena, another French cult hero in Teddy Riner won gold to become the most decorated judoka in Olympic Games history.
France already had two gold medals in one day from two of its biggest icons. Could day seven get any better?
Enter this formidable French trio: Joris Daudet, Sylvain Andre and Romain Mahieu.
Daudet & co. write French BMX history at Saint-Quentin
“It's an amazing night,” Daudet told Olympics.com upon seizing gold, “and being able to do that with my friends is an unreal feeling, and it's amazing to be able to write history and put BMX Racing on top. The fans were amazing, they helped us a lot yesterday and today, and being able to perform in front of them and deliver.”
The French fancied their chances, with their cyclists the fastest three in the semi-final heats and just a point apart from each other. Each of the heats that featured two French drivers each ended with a French one-two, a sign of the dominance to come in the final.
Everything was in France’s favour, not least an animated crowd filled with blue, red and white flags and rousing roars at every mention of someone French.
Upon the starting beep, the SQY BMX Stadium erupted for its home heroes on every run, turn and push, each cycler driven on by an adoring home crowd.
France BMX Racing's Romain Mahieu, Joris Daudet, Sylvain Andre (left to right) at Paris 2024.
“We don't really realize it yet, I have been here for 10 years,” silver medallist Andre explained to Olympics.com, “it seems very normal so far, but I wish I watched it on TV, it must have been amazing! But I watched the replay and it's great for us individually, for the sport, for France, and I think we will have time to realize this a bit later.”
Switzerland’s Cedric Butti only missed out on a medal by one hundredth of a second, but the French were simply too good. That is how high the quality on show was.
French sporting history written on home soil
As they crossed the finish line one by one, the French trio had done something no athletes had done in the last century. A first tricolour 1-2-3 in 100 years, fittingly since the last time Paris hosted the Games in 1924.
“Someone told me that about 100 years just before the racing,” Mahieu, who took bronze, told Olympics.com. “I think it was the dream of a lot of people to see us going 1-2-3. We've been talking about it for years. People wanted us to go 1-2-3 because we've never got a medal for BMX for men at least. But now we got three in one night.”
Not only did the Frenchmen seize a seismic 1-2-3, they did so in front of the president of the nation, something that attracted huge attention in the stands as he took a seat and spoke to volunteers.
His presence epitomized just how important this night was for French sport, not least the three silverware-struck athletes.
Daudet explained, “We saw [Macron] after the finish line, and it's amazing to be able to have him watch the race and have all the important people in France and being able to come here and watch our small sport.”
Double success for cycling couple Mahieu and Sakakibara
It would not be the City of Love without an Olympic love story.
About 15 minutes after Mahieu won bronze, his partner Saya Sakakibara of Australia won a sensational gold medal in the women’s final, trouncing the competition after a flawless semi-final performance where she won each heat.
No doubt the Frenchman was delighted with his bronze, but it was his partner for whom he was full of praise.
"I didn't even have time to realize what I did,” Mahieu said, “and she went and she won gold. I think I'm more proud of her than what I did. I don't know why, but that's what I feel now because she's been through a lot. It's been hard for her and it's just everything that she deserves. So yeah, I’m really proud."
The French crowd sang all night, whether it was renditions of the national anthem ‘La Marseillaise’ or the fan favourite ‘Que je t’aime.’
Whether you were French or not, this was a night of sporting pride for the home nation. From the pool to the mat to the track, this is France’s night and they will dance all night in the streets by the Seine.