It was an honor to ride again for the United States World Championship Team. The 2024 BMX World Championships took place in Abu Dhabi.
This is my fourth time riding for the United States World Championship Team. Previously I have ridden for the Team in Montpellier, France (2021), Abu Dhabi (2022), and Glasgow, Scotland (2023).
I treat every international event as special, but it’s extra special to ride in the USA Jersey. I was the only USA rider competing in my event, BMX Flatland.
20 of the best riders in the world qualified for the event with some heavy competition. As my 26th year riding pro, I was the oldest rider at the entire event.
I rode well in the prelims, debuting a brand new trick. My run was good enough to make the semi-finals the next evening.
The level of riding rose through the roof in the semi-finals. In all my years competing that was the highest level of riding I’ve ever seen in a competition. Even the finals were not as intense as the semi-finals.
Twelve of the best riders in the world faced off for the semi-final. I had to ride first, which is no easy feat. Fortunately, I pulled an amazing run. I hit my new trick, and only had one very small mistake during the entire run.
After my run was over I was glowing with an almost certain I would be in the finals the next day. However, the other riders stepped up and responded with heavy runs of their own. Everyone rode at an incredible level that night.
Out of the entire semi-final competition there were only 11 touches total for all twelve riders. So many of the riders rode flawless. Typically in a competition there might only be one flawless run, and even the winning rider might have a small mistake or two.
What an incredible experience to stand shoulder to shoulder with the best in the world. While I’m slightly bummed I didn’t get to stand on the podium, I leave Abu Dhabi with my head held high. Knowing that I rode my best, finishing in the top 10 in the world.
It is also not lost on me that I was already standing on pro podiums before some of these riders were even born! Pretty crazy when you think about it.
A big thank you to USA Cycling for this amazing opportunity.
— Matt
