Alise Willoughby leads strong start for American riders in BMX racing at the Paris Olympics

MONTIGNY-LE-BRETONNEUX, France (AP) — BMX racers Alise Willoughby of the United States and Joris Daudet of France have a whole lot in common.

They are three-time and reigning world champions. The 33-year-olds have spent most of their lives at the top of a sport that rarely rewards longevity. And they are still chasing Olympic gold after years of heartache and disappointment.

Both put themselves in position Thursday night to change that at the Paris Games.

Willoughby and Daudet cruised through their heat races and into the semifinal rounds, each getting perfect starts and winning their first two heats to take all the pressure off the third. Willoughby and Daudet will be part of 16-rider fields that will contest two semifinals Friday night for a spot in the winner-take-all medal race.

“There's definitely room for improvement,” said Willoughby, who was joined by teammate Daleny Vaughn in the semifinals. “But yeah, it was a lot of fun out there. I love riding at night under the lights. It's a great atmosphere. So yeah, going well."

Willoughby, who is coached by her husband and former Olympic medalist Sam, has consistently performed at a high level on the global stage except when it comes to the Olympics, when things tend to go awry. Willoughby crashed out of the semifinals at the London Games and Tokyo Games, and her only medal remains the silver she took home from Rio in 2016.

The ever-positive Willoughby wasn't the only one to sweep her heats, though. Saya Sakakibara, the world's No. 1 rider, also won her three races, while Bethany Schriever of Britain did the same as she attempts to defend her gold medal from Tokyo.

“My practice wasn't very good,” Sakakibara said. “Once I got on top of the hill, I was like, within the atmosphere. Everyone was cheering. I could feel the energy. I felt the pressure. And I'm like, ‘This is where I thrive.’”

The biggest surprise on the night may have been Mariana Pajon, the two-time gold medalist and reigning silver medalist, who struggled in her early heats and needed to race in the last-chance qualifier. The Colombian won it as thunder and lightning began to light up the sky.

Daudet has struggled even more than Willoughby in the biggest competition in their sport. Despite his 12 medals — and those three golds — at the world championships, he has never been in contention for an Olympic medal in the finals.

Daudet was joined by Romain Mahieu and Sylvain Andre as France swept the top three spots in the men's heats. Kamren Larsen and Cameron Wood of the U.S. were next, setting up a showdown between the two biggest BMX powers.

“You have to be in the race to compete for a medal,” Larsen said. “You're not there, you can't fight for it.”

That was the case for Niek Kimmann, the reigning Olympic gold medalist from the Netherlands, who had to withdraw from the Paris Games earlier this year when doctors discovered an inflamed heart muscle. The devastating news came after Kimmann earned a silver medal behind Daudet at the world championships in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

The program for BMX racing was tweaked following the Tokyo Games, where four sets of heats produced four riders apiece, and those 16 advanced to a pair of semifinals. The top eight following that round raced for the medals.

In the system used for the Paris Games, eight riders were placed in three heats, and they accumulated points based on where they finished in each of three runs. The top 12 riders advanced to the semifinals and the next eight to the last-chance qualifier.

In a sport where chaos and carnage reign supreme, the only major crash Friday night involved Colombia's Carlos Alberto Ramirez in the last-chance race. He was helped off the track on a stretcher but was able to smile and give a thumbs up.

Only a handful of riders hit the deck, unlike the Tokyo Games, where American rider Connor Fields crashed so hard that he spent several days in the hospital with severe injuries. Other than Ramirez, everyone else was able to walk away.

There was still plenty of drama. Several races were won with bike-throws at the line, and a packed track adjacent to the National Velodrome of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines created a raucous atmosphere after a quiet, pandemic-delayed Tokyo Games.

“Obviously with Alise and Connor in the past coming home with medals, there is an added pressure, especially being from the U.S.,” said Larsen, the reigning Pan American Games gold medalist. “Myself and the other Cameron, just doing what we can do to qualify into tomorrow. Step one of the plan is done.”

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games