Natalya Diehm has become the first Australian woman to win a medal in the Olympic BMX freestyle after a nerve-wracking wait on Wednesday to secure bronze. But there was disappointment for Tokyo gold medallist Logan Martin, as the Queenslander failed to finish either of his runs and bowed out of the men’s final in ninth.
“I wanted this so bad, to be the first Aussie female rider to get a medal at the Olympic Games,” Diehm said afterwards, clad in an Australian flag. “But not even that – I’m the first Aussie female BMX freestyle rider to get a medal for an international event.
“We’ve never medalled at a world cup event at all. So to do it here on the biggest world stage at Paris 2024, that’s going down in history. I’ve written history today. That’s insane.”
In sweltering conditions in the shadow of the Luxor Obelisk in central Paris, Diehm was the first rider to have a full run after France’s Laury Perez crashed in her opener. The 26-year-old from Queensland posted a strong score of 88.80 to immediately put her into contention for a medal.
From there it was a waiting game. Throughout the first round – riders get two runs in the final, with their best single score counting – only China’s Deng Yawen would better Diehm’s score, leaving the Australian in the silver medal position
Diehm’s second run, an 87.70, was not enough to change her position, despite a remarkable front flip. That left her in suspense, hoping that her opening score would withstand the remainder of the field’s second run. Midway through the latter round, American Perris Benegas leapfrogged Diehm into second.
After crashes took out a number of leading contenders, it all came down to the final run – with Diehm’s close friend, Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Hannah Roberts, given the opportunity to knock the Australian off the podium. But Roberts, from the United States, mistimed a trick and was not able to complete the ride. It meant jubilation for Diehm.
“It was definitely one of the most nerve-wracking moments of my life,” she said. “Coming down to the last rider, and Hannah Roberts being one of my best friends, and I know how good she is as a competitor. I just didn’t know which way it was going to go and I didn’t want to wish bad on anyone. But I wanted that podium so bad. I can’t believe that it’s here.”
Diehm finished fifth in Tokyo, when BMX freestyle made its Olympic debut. But she has suffered several injuries in the intervening years, requiring multiple knee surgeries. At one point, she even pursued a coaching scholarship with AusCycling with a view to potentially opting for a career change.
“After Tokyo I didn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel,” she said. “It was very hard. But I just had to keep pushing forward. The one thing I knew for certain, that wasn’t the way I wanted to go out. Whether I made it here to the Olympics, whether I made it to the final or not – I wanted to go out on the terms that I chose.”
In the men’s competition, a fall midway through his first run and a slip on the second denied defending Olympic champion Martin a proper attempt at defending his crown. After qualifying well on Tuesday, Martin was the third last rider to begin his run – and roll down the ramp knowing a major score would be required after three riders posted 90 plus attempts early in competition.
Despite opening in style, Martin came unstuck midway and found himself on the ground after attempting a difficult manoeuvre. It left all the pressure on the Australian for his second attempt, but he ended it after an error meant a winning score would be impossible.
“I’m a little disappointed,” he said afterwards. “I’m not disappointed in the fact that I didn’t walk away with a medal, I’m disappointed in the fact that I wasn’t able to perform my run.
“I didn’t doubt myself coming into this event,” Martin added. “I believed I planned a winning run. I believe I could have landed a winning run. Today just wasn’t that day for me.”
Martin, 30, said he would not yet commit to competing through to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, but was not walking away from the sport immediately. “Possibly – we’ll see,” Martin said when asked whether he would aim for the next Games. “I don’t know. We’ll see. I’m going to keep competing – this is definitely not the end.”
Watching on in the crowd were Martin’s friends and family, including his young son and daughter. Martin said he saw tears in the eyes of his two-and-a-half-year-old daughter after his fall.
“They’ve seen me crash, they’ve seen me get back up,” he said. “I guess I want to portray a good message for them – that if you fall down, you get back up. I didn’t get the outcome today, but I’ll keep fighting.”
