Australia has won its 13th gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics with Logan Martin triumphing in the first-ever BMX freestyle competition.
The 27-year-old dad from the Gold Coast wowed viewers back home with a stunning no-handed front flip in the first run earning him an winning score of 93.30.
Martin made history as the first ever gold medalist in the sport as the BMX event made its Olympic debut.
‘I have no words. It’s still sinking in,’ Martin said. ‘I came into the final with all the pressure in the world on me and I overcame that and I managed to win the event off my first run.’
‘I honestly can’t believe it. I’m so stoked.’
Australia has won its 13th gold medal at Tokyo Olympics with Logan Martin in the BMX freestyle
The young Queensland dad, 27, from the Gold Coast wowed viewers back home with an incredible display of tricks to claim Australia’s third gold medal within two hours
Martin executed a flawless no-handed front flip in the first run earning him a winning score of 93.30
Martin scored 93.30 in his first run to secure the win and was followed by Venezuelan veteran Daniel Dhers with 92.05 and third-place British rider Declan Brooks on 90.80.
Martin was untouchable, posting the top scores throughout the men’s runs.
He was the only competitor to score more than 90 in Saturday’s two seeding runs, confirming he was the man to beat.
It came down to Japan’s Rim Nakamura, who comes from a strong cycling family and is named after a bike part.
With local fans lining a nearby bridge in their thousands to cheer him on, Nakamura made a strong start at Ariake Sports Park but faded late for a score of 85.10.
Martin highlighted his first run with a no-handed front flip, scoring 93.30.
He began his second run knowing gold was already in the bag, sitting up to celebrate early after slipping a pedal.
It’s been a whirlwind few months for Martin, who announced just a few weeks ago that he and his wife Kim were expecting their second child due in January.
Martin is a three-time world and X Games champion. He built a BMX ramp in his backyard to train for the Olympics in 2019.
Martin began his second run knowing gold was already in the bag after his impressive first run
He made history as the first ever gold medalist in the sport which is making its Olympic debut in Tokyo
Martin scored 93.30 in his first run on Sunday to secure the win after posting the top scores in Saturday’s seeding runs
‘I’ve had to build this because there’s not so much for me to practice on around the Gold Coast and around Brisbane,’ he said.
‘I’ve wanted to build a park in my backyard for so long, after years of not having a proper place to practice big tricks and keep improving.
‘Finally, I have a place to progress and learn new tricks again because I built big ramps to replicate international competition sizes.’
Martin, who has undergone collarbone surgery and suffered an ankle injury in the past, revealed he does not train with foam pits.
‘I have enough air awareness and control on my bike to be comfortable enough to do most things on a resi [rubber mat],’ he said.
An elated Martin celebrates his historic gold medal win in the BMX event at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday
Martin then started his last run with victory secured, before he pulled up after his foot slipped from the pedal and he saluted the crowd
‘When I learn new tricks on the resi, I practise them enough on there that when I need to do it on something real, it feels comfortable anyway. I do all of my tricks every day on real ramps anyway.’
Martin’s win unfolded less than two hours after Australia claimed two gold medals in the pool with Emma McKeon in the 50m freestyle before the women’s 4x100m medley stormed home to snatch victory from the US.
Australia is expected to win a 14th gold in the sailing later on Sunday, where Matt Wearn only needs to finish the course without disqualification on Sunday to confirm victory in the Laser class.