Peckham’s Kye Whyte crashes out of BMX semi-final at Paris 2024

Kye Whyte’s dreams of picking up a medal at a second Olympics were dashed after he was stretchered off after crashing out of the BMX racing semi-final in Paris.

The Peckham-born racer picked up silver at the Tokyo Olympics but lost control of his bike on the race’s second jump and was sent tumbling on to his side.

Whyte finished fifth, third and fourth in his three heats to qualify for the men’s semi-finals in 10th overall.

He revealed before the semi-final that he had been riding through injury in an attempt to land a medal in Paris. 

“Tonight didn’t go the way I wanted it to at all,” said Whyte after the quarter-finals.

“Practice went really well but for the past seven weeks I’ve been struggling to train and ride my bike due to back issues and the one day those issues decided to return was tonight.

“I’m in a lot of pain. I just tried my hardest to make sure I finished in the top four and qualify for tomorrow.

“The course is very tight and technical. We’ve raced in Paris before and the old course was fast enough on the turns and they didn’t chance the turns but the course so the track is much faster and that makes it difficult in the turns. You could see people diving in and crashing as a result so I just wanted to stay safe and qualify.”

A GB Cycling spokesperson said: “Following his crash in the BMX racing semi-final, Kye Whyte was assessed immediately by the on-site medical team. 

“This was followed up by further immediate review by Great Britain Cycling Team Dr Nigel Jones who delivered a positive report, with no significant injuries.

“We wish Kye a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him on his bike very soon.”