Papendal will play host to the 26th edition of the UCI BMX SX World Championships, with the winner of each event being crowned as BMX Cycling World Champion and walking away with the prestigious rainbow jersey.
The Australian Cycling Team has a formidable record at the World Championships with a handful of winners, including Natarsha Williams, Warwick Stevenson, Sam Willoughby and Caroline Buchanan all claiming the world championships title in the past.
Australia will have three riders competing at this year's World Championships, with Lauren Reynolds in the Women's Elite, with Izaac Kennedy and Jack Davis in the Men's Elite.
Unfortunately, 2019 World Championships finalist, Saya Sakakibara will not race as she continues to recover from injuries sustained in a crash in the semi-finals of the Tokyo Olympic Games on July 30.
Reynolds comes into her eleventh elite World Championships in top form after clinching fifth in the women's Olympic BMX, equalling Australia's best result in the women's event at the Games. After an early crash in the semi-finals, Reynolds rallied well to make the final. After finishing ninth in 2019 world championships, the three-time Olympian will be hoping to carry her Olympic form into this year's event.
The Aussie BMX rider is fresh off her recent engagement to former USA Rugby 7s Olympian Ryan Carlyle as well, a productive few weeks for Reynolds!
Izaac Kennedy heads into his second elite World Championships with more experience under his belt after finishing third in a UCI BMX SX World Cup round last year in Shepparton and finishing fourth at the most recent World Cup round in Colombia. The twenty-one-year-old made the quarterfinals in 2019, finishing 19th overall, an impressive debut in the elite category.
Tamworth rider Jack Davis has had a solid start to 2021, leading the AusCycling BMX National Cup after taking out all three of his opening state series rounds and both national rounds. Davis represented Australia in the juniors last World Championships, making the quarterfinals. After spending time in the USA, Davis comes into the Championships race-ready and keen to better his result from the previous championships.
The UCI BMX World Championships finals will be live and free via SBS On Demand, streaming will start at 9:15pm AEST on Sunday, August 22.
