Rio Olympics 2016: Kiwi Trent Jones survives day of BMX crash carnage

Cyclists, from right, Trent Jones of New Zealand, Niek Kimmann of the Netherlands, Tory Nyhaug of Canada and Jelle van Gorkom of the Netherlands ride their bicycles. Photo / AP.

Kiwi Trent Jones survived a day of BMX crash carnage to qualify for the semifinals at the Rio Olympics.

The 22-year-old finished second in his quarter-final heat to advance to tomorrow's 16-rider semifinals on a day when a number of the sport's leading lights were eliminated.

Jones, who posted the 25th-fastest time in the seeding run, had two second-place finishes and a third to progress to the next round.

His total of seven points was one point behind Dutchman Jelle van Gorkom who won two of the three runs.

Top qualifier, France's reigning world champion Joris Daudet, crashed out in Jones' second run and failed to progress.

He wasn't the only one to fall by the wayside. Latvia's two-time defending Olympic champion Maris Strombergs and British former world champ Liam Phillips were also eliminated as windy conditions played havoc.

Jones opted for a safety-first approach.

"The finish line is not at the end of the first straight, so I decided to be conservative and back my race craft to pass riders," he said.

Australia's Sam Willoughby, the London bronze medallist, was the only rider to win all three heat runs. The semifinals are also raced over three runs with the medal race following it.

-AAP