Reynolds clinches BMX Freestyle Street gold with dramatic effort
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Garrett Reynolds won his fifth consecutive X Games BMX Freestyle Street championship Friday afternoon with an event-high 43.0 in the final run for a total of 85.0, two points ahead of silver medalist Chad Kerley.
Heading into the final run, Reynolds needed a score of 42.0 or better to pass Kerley, who came the closest to knocking Reynolds off the championship pedestal in the event’s five-year history.
“It’s pretty cool,” Reynolds said. “I seriously thought Chad had it the whole time. I was dying the whole time that last run. ... It’s definitely an honor.”
Reynolds fell to the ground at the end of his clinching run, but the judges decided not to penalize him for the fall, as it came just before the final buzzer. The 21-year-old said he expected to lose points because of the mishap.
“I thought he should have won,” Reynolds said of Kerley. “If I was a judge, it would’ve been him.”
VIDEO: X Games Los Angeles 2012
Kerley, 18, said he was not disappointed by the final result and that he feels like he won just by competing with the athlete he has always admired.
“There was no way I thought I would’ve beat him,” Kerley said.
Dakota Roche earned the bronze medal with a score of 69.0.
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