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Until now, BMX Freestyle hasn’t been part of the Summer Olympics, but this will change as BMX Freestyle competitions will be part of the 2020 Olympic Games to be held in Tokyo next summer.
Freestyle BMX rider Chelsea Wolfe started the year with one goal in mind: to get a ticket to represent her country and our community at the Tokyo Games.
She could make history by becoming the very first transgender athlete to compete in the Olympic Games.
The good news is that the American BMW Freestyle Federation has already recruited her to represent the United States. Earlier this year she took part in the World Cup and will take part in next year’s World Championships.
Just two American female BMX Freestyle athletes are likely to be selected to compete in the Olympics in Tokyo and the competition is proving tough. Two other American athletes had higher rankings than Chelsea at the World Cup where she finished fifth. So it’s all going to come down to the World Championships.
Even if she’s unsuccessful in her bet, she is already a role model for many young LGBTQ athletes who are as passionate as she is about BMX, or any other sport, which is an additional motivation for her.
“When the opportunity arose to start my career, I realized that if there is going to be that person who blazes a trail it’s going to have to be me,” Wolfe said in an episode of Five Rings To Rule Them All. “So as far as being visible as a trans athlete, what I do love is I get to be the person I needed when I was younger, which is very healing for me. And also it just feels amazing any time I hear that I’ve helped someone feel comfortable in their skin doing what they love to do.”
She set too high a standard, for sure, but it was certainly set high before and Chelsea has already achieved some great victories by playing the sport she loves, competing in official and high-level competitions, and earning her spot on the Team USA.
Let’s wish her all the best in her dream of competing in the Tokyo Olympics that will take place from to 2020.
You can follow Chelsea Wolfe on social media: Twitter and Instagram.
Photo from Shred-Girls
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