Teenager Brad Shaylor will travel to one of the most dangerous countries on the planet later this month in a quest to become a world champion.
While Colombia is infamous for any array of things that you’ll find in the ‘Safety and Security’ chapter of a Lonely Planet book, it’ll also be the location for the upcoming 2016 BMX World Championships which gets underway on May 25.
The Year 10 Xavier College student qualified for the prestigious competition after being crowned Australian champion at the BMX National Championships in March.
Brad took out the U15 national title, and will now travel to the other side of the globe to bring back the international equivalent.
Speaking with the Weekender, the Cranebrook resident said he was primed and ready for the biggest race of his young life.
“I’m stoked to make the team. I’ve been training day in, day out, for this exact opportunity to race overseas, so it’s really been a successful year to be able to do that,” he said.
“The track in Colombia is at a really high altitude, so fitness is obviously a big key.
“I just can’t wait to go to another country, race against new people and just be a part of the Australian team.”
Brad trains at the LMX BMX Club in Cranebrook under the tutelage of 12-time national champion and Beijing Olympian Luke Madill.
Madill said his young protégé has worked extremely hard in the lead-up to the Colombia trip.
“Brad’s strength is already there, I’ve just been trying to help him refine his technique and his race tactics,” he said.
Nathan Taylor is the Weekender’s Deputy Editor and Senior Sports Writer. He also compiles the weekly Chatter on the Box TV column. Nathan is an award-winning journalist, who has worked at the Weekender for a decade.
