Taupō fielded three riders for Team New Zealand BMX; Micah Wallace (front, centre), Donovan Wallace (kneeling, right) and Angus Thomson (first standing row, far left).
Three young BMX riders from Taupō have returned from their first international competition at the UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.
All three left with performances to be proud of and memories to last a lifetime.
Micah Wallace gained something extra along the way, however - a new ranking as the world’s number six rider in the 9-year-old-girls’ category.
Gaining the ranking was a tall order, with Micah competing in four races to win the accolade.
Her younger brother Donovan, as the youngest member of Team New Zealand, reached the semifinals in the 8-year-old-boys’ category.
After a strong start, he was cut off by another rider, recovering to finish as the world’s 16th-best rider in his category.
Sixteen-year-old Angus Thomson didn’t quite get the result he was hoping for but the experience was valuable and enjoyable, he said.
With 120 riders in his category, “it’s short and sharp - one little mistake and you’ve lost it”.
“It’s a lot bigger scene so there’s a lot more riders there.
“It was very competitive, lots of pressure and big crowds... [but] a really good atmosphere.”
The UCI Cycling World Championships is a new, multi-discipline international competition organised by cycling’s governing body, the Union Cycliste International, and is billed as the world’s biggest.
It will be held every four years, bringing together the world’s top athletes from road, track, trial and para-cycling, as well as mountain bikers and BMXers.
For Taupō's competitors, it was a family affair, with the Wallaces’ mum, dad and youngest brother, as well as Thomson’s mum and sister making the long trip to Scotland.
Adam Wallace, Micah and Donovan’s dad, said the atmosphere at the games was intense.
“It was pretty hard out.
“It’s like going to the All Blacks game - those European countries all go really big with it.”
“There would have been 10,000-odd people in the crowds.”
“There was complete silence until the gate opened and the crowd erupted.”
That didn’t stop both Wallace children from hearing their dad all the way from the stands as they raced.
Micah took the crowds, and the pressure, in her stride, though.
When asked whether the big audience made her nervous, her answer was simple and confident.
“Not really.
“It felt like everyone was cheering for me!”
After the world stage, it’s back to business as usual for all three riders, with regular BMX practice and more races upcoming, including the BMXNZ North Island Titles in Auckland over Labour Weekend.
For Micah, the biggest change is a new racing number, said Adam Wallace.
“Her racing numbers are W6 now- everyone can see that she’s number six in the world.”
The Tauranga youngster has a sweet plan for his prize money.