UCI BMX FREESTYLE WORLD CUP - DIRIYAH DAY 2 - Masterful Rimu Nakamura and Hannah Roberts to the finals

Feb 17, 2023

Written by Bart de Jong

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Day 2 of the first stop of the 2023 UCI BMX Freestyle World Cup in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia. On the programme today it was Women’s qualifications and Men’s semi-finals. The Women qualifications started strong with huge tricks from the Chinese riders. Backflip from Quian ZHENG, Suicide no hander from Sibei SUN and a Tailwhip from Jiaqi SUN, the Chinese women showed their skills on the bike and managed to qualify for the finals. As usual, Hannah ROBERTS, Perris BENEGAS, Nikita DUCARROZ and Charlotte WORTHINGTON turned the ramps on fire with some impressive Backflips, 360 Tuck no hander, Tailwhips and so much more. With her 540, Nene NAITO impressed the judges and took 2nd place just behind the World Champion Hannah ROBERTS.

The riders who made it to the finals :

Hannah ROBERTS
Nene NAITO
Jiaqi SUN
Kim MULLER
Sibei SUN
Perris BENEGAS

7. Nikita DUCARROZ
8. Minato OIKE
9. Charlotte WORTHINGTON
10. Qian ZHENG
11. Valeriia LIUBIMOV
12. Sasha PARDOE

One sentence to describe the Men semi-finals : they wowed judges and mesmerized the public. Rimu NAKAMURA finished first in the semi-finals with a huge 720 barspin. Marcus CHRISTOPHER reaffirms his position as one of the leaders of the discipline finishing with a massive 540 flair truck at the end of his run. The surprise of the day was the French rider Istvan CAILLET who showed his great evolution impressing the judges with two perfect runs full of amplitude and big tricks. Massive transfers, Flair whip, cashroll, he didn’t skimp on the tricks to ensure he qualified for the final tomorrow. Furthermore, Kevin PERAZA and Irek RIZAEV will bring their smiles and styles to the finals. It promises to be a huge show for the final tomorrow.