Ahead of this weekend’s Manchester (UK) World Cup, we bring you a documentary short highlighting Tokyo 2020 Olympic Hopeful, Kye Whyte. The film, produced by Jungle Creations for the UK National Lottery, brings us up-close to Kye’s story, from London’s hardscrabble Peckham district, to being among the top contenders for the GBR Team next year.
Here is the Jungle Creations description of the film:
From Peckham to Podium follows 18 year-old BMX rider, Kye Whyte, who is training for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in the hopes of becoming a member of Team GB. Born and raised in Peckham, Kye started BMXing at the age of six and with the support and sacrifices his parents have made he has since won nine British Championships and six national championships. Already a European Championships silver medalist, today Kye is able to train full time thanks to the funding that the National Lottery has provided.
In the film, we hear from Kye’s mum and dad, with “real and raw” stories about their family’s long journey in BMX Racing, and the difficult decisions many BMX parents must often make.
Many, if not most of you, who follow the international BMX scene will know of Kye’s older brother, Tre, who is also a big part of this story, and is mentioned many times in the three minutes and 55 seconds of this film.
The UK National Lottery provides grants for so-called “good causes,” like British Cycling. As of 2016, the fund was roughly £35 billion (US$45 Billion) for this purpose. According to sources, 25% of lottery revenue goes toward the fund, along with all unclaimed prizes.
Kye makes it clear, in his interview, that his budding Olympic dream would not be possible without the contribution of the National Lottery.
As for Peckham–if you don’t know the incredible BMX story behind its rise from dirt lot to training ground for the next generation of Great Britain’s BMX greats, AND the people involved, you need to pull a fiver out of your pocket, and rent “1 Way Up: The Story of Peckham BMX” off iTunes (or, better-yet, invest $14.99 to buy it; you’ll want to watch it a lot!)– link below.
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