Miriam Balanescu speaks to BMX racer Beth Shriever, who will be visiting Alexandra Palace this month

One of Haringey’s more unusual events is an annual extravaganza celebrating all things cycling, aptly named The Cycle Show. It’s the biggest event of its kind in the UK and, playing host, Alexandra Palace becomes packed with exhibitors, demo tracks and starry cyclists, with events ranging from ‘track stand’ competitions – where cyclists must remain balanced with both feet on the pedals – to ‘jaw droppers’ where bikes are built in real time.

This year, The Cycle Show celebrates its 20th anniversary, boasting an impressive line-up of cycling speakers and experts. Among them is BMX racer Beth Shriever, who nabbed gold in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics against Colombia’s reigning champion Mariana Pajon. Her win came moments after Kye Whyte won silver in the men’s BMX final, the UK’s first Olympic medal for the sport.

BMX is less known than other cycling sports. “There was a track not too far from where I lived,” explained Beth. “I’ve got two younger brothers, so all three of us went and had a look. We just loved it from the get go, basically. It’s quite a family oriented sport.”

More perilous perhaps than other types of cycling, BMX racing takes place on purpose-built courses with the course changing height. Athletes literally ‘fly’ over the track, reaching heights of several feet. “You’ve got to have a good head on your shoulders, you’ve got to be confident and not be scared to try new things as well,” insisted Beth.

Despite Beth being the leading female BMX racer in the run up to Tokyo and World Junior Champion in 2017, UK Sport announced in 2019 that it would not be funding female BMX racers, on the basis that a medal had never been won for the sport by a British athlete. This meant that Beth initially had to resort to crowdfunding to pay her way, while also working
as a part-time teaching assistant.

“It was like: ‘Why aren’t we getting the same opportunity as the guys?’” said Beth. “But for me, I just didn’t lose hope. I knew that I could do it.

“Once UK Sport and the National Lottery saw my potential and gave me the chance, I proved to everyone that girls can do it, that we do deserve the chance and we do deserve the funding.”

And so, actually racing in the games almost became secondary to this initial saga: “It was quite a journey to actually get there,” Beth said. “It was obviously my dream to just be able to compete at the games, let alone win.

“I was having such a good time with Kye, Ross and my coaches. I think the fact that I was just taking it all in and just enjoying every moment helped me in itself. I wasn’t worried about the racing and I wasn’t worried about a result. I was just focusing on myself, and making the most of every single experience.

“I’m now with the bigger girls and I’ve made my mark in the elite women category – the only way is up from here now, really.”

An important part of the sport is staying level-headed, something which became challenging when Beth saw her teammate Kye win seconds before her. “I work quite closely with a psychologist and it’s actually quite funny – before the games we went through every single scenario that could have happened and that was one of the scenarios because we
knew Kye was racing before me,” Beth recalled. Seeing Kye win silver, Beth teared up. “I had to bring myself back and be like: ‘Right, it’s my turn now, focus on the process, it doesn’t need to change anything.’ Then off I went.”

Now, Beth is a full-time cyclist, “able to do what I can to be the best that I can,” she urged. Inspiring a new generation of BMX racers and spreading the word about the sport is one of her goals. “Because it is quite a niche sport, I feel like it still needs to get out there more, it needs to be televised more, especially for women, and just showing how cool a sport it is,” Beth said. “There were so many more people signing up to BMX clubs and getting their kids started,” she continued. “So, I think what we did helped a lot, but we just need to keep the ball rolling and keep the momentum going. Getting our world cups televised would be the next step for us.”

For Beth, the UK’s devotion to cycling comes nowhere near France or the Netherlands, “a cyclist’s country”. Events like The Cycle Show, she hopes, can be a boost to the industry, an opportunity to show “what our sport’s about”. “It’s always good to get it out there and make links with people, because once people realize how cool our sport is, they like to get involved – and that’s what we want.

The Cycle Show is at Alexandra Palace from Friday, 21st April to Sunday, 23rd April. To find out more and book tickets visit cycleshow.co.uk.

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