Windhoek
Close on 200 youngsters between the ages of five and ten participated in some exhilarating BMX activities in Windhoek recently. The event was held under the watchful eye of reigning world champion and well-known BMX trainer, Tyrone Johns of KwaZulu-Natal Cycling.
The first event took place on Friday at Suiderhof Primary School, followed by an open race day event at the Doc Jubber Fields on Saturday morning, culminating in a free ride at the newly constructed pump track at Farm Windhoek on Saturday afternoon.
The Namibian Cycling Federation hosted the BMX Race Day event as part of its Early Rider Development programme, which is a key component of the NCF’s five-year development plan. The Early Rider Development programme focuses on introducing cycling to children aged between five and nine – not only in Windhoek, but also in other regions.
The programme aims to address the demographic imbalance in the sport of cycling and hopefully increase the number of female riders. Over the past weekend, a total of 137 boys participated, while the girls numbered a mere 51.
The ultimate aim is to encourage the introduction of BMX as a cycling discipline, and to this end, NCF will soon be conducting training courses for instructors to promote the sport and to ensure the roll-out of the Early Rider programme across Namibia.
2014 BMX Masters World Champion Tyrone Johns led the activities. Johns started cycling at the age of four and was crowned national champion on numerous occasions. He has also represented South Africa nine times at the BMX World Championships and is a dedicated coach for many up-and-coming youngsters at Giba Gorge near Pinetown in KwaZulu-Natal.
Sally Harper said: “the Namibian Cycling Federation is pleased with the success of the weekend’s trial race day events, and will continue to use this format to promote cycling throughout Namibia from an early age for fun, transport and sport.”