was fierce in the opening months of racing and, as the season waned, very few points separated the top female contenders vying for Olympic Team berths. At the UCI BMX World Championships held late May 2012 in Birmingham,
England, the relative standings of Crain, Martin and fellow U.S. racer Alise Post were, for all intents, negligible. All three ladies were within reach of the USA Cycling Power Rankings top spot and the corresponding first slot on the U.S. Olympic Women's Team that went with that distinction. After dominating all of her opening rounds, Crain went down hard in the quarterfinals with a severe shoulder injury, sidelined to witness her Olympic dreams slip away. That day, Post also hit bad luck and the pavement in the women's final, while Martin went on to get 4th place overall and the Olympic Team designation.With Martin earning the first Olympic Team spot, Post received the "Discretionary Pick" for her win at the 3rd round of UCI World Cup Series in Holland. Crain, coming in slightly behind, was left in the wings as alternate, where she would remain unless either Martin or Post were unable to compete.
Crain left for London this past Tues., joining fellow Haro BMX Team Riders and U.S. Olympic Men’s Team Member Nic Long and Australian Olympic Men’s Team Member Khalen Young. Women’s BMX seeding runs commence Aug. 8 at 3 p.m. GMT. For more information on 2012 Olympic BMX action, television scheduling and live coverage, interested parties may log-on here.
Pics by BdJ
After doing a BMX 'zine for ten years (1987 - 1996) FATBMX made it on the internet. The year was 1998. Here to stay.