BMX – Manon Veenstra from Kerkenveld has surprisingly won a silver medal on the Olympic track of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. The BMX star from Drenthe is participating in the Olympic Games for the first time.
Earlier in the evening, 26-year-old Veenstra convincingly qualified for the final. She finished third after three runs in the semi-finals. Only Australian Saya Sakakibara and British defending champion Beth Shriever did better.
In the final, Veenstra once again showed her excellent form. The debutante was the only one who stayed in the wake of Sakakibara, the eventual winner. After that great performance, she ran across the track to her family in the stands. Behind Veenstra, the Swiss Zoé Claessens came third.
With Laura Smulders there was a second Dutch BMX star active in the final. She finished in fourth place. Her sister Merel was eliminated in the semi-finals.
Veenstra’s silver is the best BMX result by a woman for the Netherlands at the Games. Earlier, Laura Smulders (2012 London) and Merel Smulders (2021 Tokyo) took bronze.
