- Logan Martin was unable to retain his Olympic gold medal
- The BMX freestyler did not place in the medal standings at the Paris final
- Penny Smith secured bronze in the women’s trap shooting event
Logan Martin has lost his title as the reigning Olympic BMX freestyle champion, with the Australian star crashing during both of his runs in the final.
However, Australia discovered a new talent as Natalya Diehm delivered a remarkable performance, unexpectedly winning a bronze medal in the women’s competition at La Concorde on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old Martin, who won the inaugural Olympic event in Tokyo three years ago, aimed to surpass his competitors while being aware of their improvements over the years.
Despite executing a strong initial run, Martin’s front wheel clipped the edge of a jump during a trick near the end, causing him to crash to the ground.
In his second attempt, striving to overtake the exceptional Argentine leader Jose Torres Gil, Martin fell heavily after a double flare, losing momentum and ultimately riding out, thus ending his hopes for a double gold.
His score of 64.40 in the first round placed him in last position, while Torres Gil earned gold with an impressive routine scoring 94.82, followed by Britain’s Kieran Reilly (93.91) and local favorite Anthony Jeanjean (93.76).
In another event, Penny Smith achieved Australia’s first shooting medal at the Paris Olympics, securing bronze in the trap category.
Logan Martin has failed to defend his BMX freestyle Olympic gold medal in Paris
The Australian legend failed on both of his runs in the final on Wednesday
Elsewhere, Penny Smith (right) won bronze in the women’s trap shooting final
The 29-year-old left-handed shooter from Bookaar in Victoria’s Western District maintained composure in the final, located in Chateauroux, south of France.
However, two misses in her last elimination round left Smith just shy of the pace, as Adriana Ruano Oliva from Guatemala clinched her country’s first Olympic gold medal, followed closely by Italy’s Maria Stanco.
This was also the world No.11’s first Olympic medal, following her sixth-place finish in both the trap and mixed trap team at the Tokyo Games.
Earlier that day, Smith excelled in a nail-biting three-way shoot-off to secure her place in the finals.
