By Matthew Raymer
In 2014 the International Olympic Committee released its “Olympic Agenda 2020,” with 40 detailed recommendations . . . of what the future of the Olympic Movement will look like
Listed at number 11 – “Foster Gender Equality… and achieve 50% female participation . . . (and) stimulate women’s participation and involvement in sport by creating more participation opportunities.”
In a subtle, but still-significant, step, the IOC is making good on their gender equality recommendation with the BMX racing track design for Paris 2024.
Like other Olympic disciplines, BMX racing made the move to gender parity in Tokyo 202(1) with equal numbers of male and female athletes – 50% female and 50% male…But gender equality remained elusive as ¼ of the Tokyo track was a toned-down/split section for the females.
That all changes at Paris 2024.
Leading up to this year’s Olympics, Elite female athletes have been elevating their skills.
Numerous social media posts show them tackling challenging track obstacles during World Cup training, obstacles usually reserved for the male athletes. That hard work has paid off, as the Paris 2024 track will have only one obstacle, a split double jump, on the second straight, that differentiates the course between men and women.
In addition to female athlete progression in BMX racing, the IOC has weighed-in and stepped up with a decision to create a track that works for all athletes.
Previous tracks like London 2012 and Rio 2016 had almost half of the track split off into separate male/female sections.
The gap between the two, in the level of difficulty, was significant. Then the IOC started transitioning with the Tokyo 2020 track – only one-quarter of the track was split off for male/female.
But now the transition is almost complete, with the acknowledgement of the elevated skill levels of the females AND a conscious decision by the IOC to nearly equalize the field-of-play for men and women.
This meant dialing-back some of the extreme obstacles in previous tracks while still creating the unique thrills of Olympic BMX racing.
The result is a track design that flows-well and should provide the excitement we have come to expect since BMX racing debuted in Beijing 2008, as the first action sport, of the Summer Olympics.
When to Watch
Thursday, August 1, 2024
2:00 PM ET – Men’s and Women’s Quarters (3 Rounds)
4:05 PM ET – Men’s and Women’s Last Chance Qualifiers
Friday, August 2, 2024
2:00 PM ET – Men’s and Women’s Semi-Finals (3 Rounds)
3:35 PM ET – Men’s and Women’s Finals (“Medal-Round”)
In the US, BMX Racing will be streamed on Peacock
Venue: Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines BMX Stadium.
Links
More on BMX Racing at the 2024 Olympic Games
Photo: UCI BMX Instagram
