Zack Warden wins the BMX Mini-Mega final: 2011 KIA X Games Asia
The 2011 KIA X Games (KXG) Asia BMX Mini-Mega final went down on Monday, May 2, at the Jiangwan Stadium in Shanghai, China. While all the riders landed impressive runs in the final, but it was America’s Zack Warden who stole the show with his perseverance
and outstanding performance to take home the gold medal.
After prevailing in the BMX Vert two days ago, Australia’s Vince Byron continued his excellent form on Monday to walk away with yet another medal. America’s BMX Legend, Chad Kagy, secured the bronze to round out the podium.
The action sports event attracted a large number of enthusiastic fans to the Jiangwan Stadium to witness the exciting riders in action. The conditions were not ideal at the Jiangwan Stadium as the day turned out to be windy. The riders had quite a tough
time adjusting to the windy conditions as well as the Mini-Mega Vert.
While the rest of the field was still adjusting to the conditions and Mini-Mega Vert, Austin Coleman became the first rider to break-free of the shackles and raised the level of competition. He landed a combination of impressive tricks, including one-handed
tail whips and 720 spins, to give something to the crowd to cheer about. His impressive run triggered a series of outstanding runs from other riders.
America’s Warden did not have the most decent start to the final. Even though he crashed hard twice in his previous runs, he refused to give up and managed to steal the show in the fourth run. The crowd was already in awe of his perseverance, but Warden
sent them in even more awe with his Backflip-Bikeflip on the jump and followed it with a triple whip and a mind-boggling hang time. This outstanding fourth run sealed the fate of the show and got him to the highest spot on the podium.
Ecstatic over his victory, Warden said, “I really wasn't expecting this, but of course anything can happen.” He credited his victory to his perseverance.
Australia’s Byron’s impressive win at the BMX Vert final on Saturday evidenced his top form. He continued to impress the Shanghai crowd with his riding and sensational tricks on Monday. A Backflip-Double Tailwhip on the jump followed by a Quarterpipe-540
no-handed Bar spin in his final run earned him enough points to take home the silver.
The heroics of the legendary Kagy were not any less impressive than Warden’s. Competing in the final with an injured left hand, he put up a fantastic fight. However, the handicap kept him from getting the best score of the contest, but did earn him the bronze
for his efforts.
While he had mixed feelings about his third place finish, Kagy was certainly happy to show his famous Super Man backflip to the crowd in the final. He said, “I did it for the crowd. In fact, I've never seen such a big turn-out, and the X Games Asia is really
getting bigger and better each year.”
The contest between some of the world’s best BMX riders turned out to be sensational. The crowd at the stadium was huge and is expected to be even bigger next year after witnessing this year’s action.
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