Japan’s Chiaki Todaka and Yu Katagiri won the UCI rainbow jerseys in BMX Freestyle Flatland at the 2025 UCI Urban Cycling World Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Earlier in the day, for the first time, three Junior UCI World Champion titles were awarded, for the first time – with a dominant Spain winning all three.
In the Women Junior category, the medals came down to a battle between Spain’s Yun Vilajosana and European Champion Andrea Pérez, along with Germany’s Emilia Keikus. Pérez and Keikus had already had success in the trials mixed team event earlier in the week, with a win for the Spanish team and silver for the Germans.
All three riders scored 60 points in the first and third sections, leaving Pérez and Keikus tied with two sections to go. As Keikus’ scores dipped, Vilajosana found her rhythm to secure silver, but it was Pérez who stayed strongest, earning her second gold medal in just four days. Only 30 points separated the three medallists.
With Hungary’s Zalán Fark unable to replicate the form that earned him the European Championship title, the Men Junior 26” final became a showdown between three young Spaniards — Mikel Azcona (part of Spain’s winning mixed team on Tuesday), Ferran Gonzalo, and Ian Martinez — and Germany’s Noah Lämmlein and Carl Christ.
Gonzalo, last year’s bronze medallist in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, displayed remarkable consistency and obtained a 10 score on section 2 to finish strongly with 170 points and claim the gold medal. Behind him, the competition was tight, with just 10 points separating the next three riders. Christ, runner-up in the mixed team event, secured another silver medal, narrowly edging out Martinez who settled for bronze.
Following an exceptionally close semi-final in the Men Junior 20” category, the final featured six riders representing five different nations. Britain’s Eddie Weightman, Germany’s Dennis Arnold, France’s Louis Chasseuil (all mixed team finalists), and Belgium’s Ugo Theunissen faced Spain’s talented duo, Beñat Segurola and top qualifier Travis Asenjo.
Asenjo, reigning 2024 UCI Junior World Champion, went head-to-head with Theunissen in a fierce contest. Both finished on 260 points, but the Spaniard claimed the title — his second gold in four days — having scored three 60-point sections compared to Theunissen’s two. Chasseuil secured the bronze after scoring 50 points in each of his last two sections to overtake Segurola.
With Anna Mondics (HUN) and Ekaterina Voloshina (IAN) failing to qualify for the four-rider final, Hungary’s Veronika Kadar became the only rider capable of interrupting an all-Japanese podium in the Women Elite Flatland final. Kadar impressed with her inventive tricks, spinning her bike in original ways, earning a score of 61.33.
The first Japanese rider, Sona Yoshimura, showcased her nation’s steady rise in Women’s Flatland, securing bronze with a score of 76.67. Next up was second-place qualifier Karin Hommura, who could not surpass the outstanding performance of Chiaki Todaka and had to settle for silver. Todaka’s run, comparable to the Men Elite performances, earned the day’s highest score of 87.17, claiming the gold medal and leading an all-Japanese podium.
The Men Elite final in BMX Freestyle Flatland featured eight riders, two competitors each from Spain, Canada, and France, alongside a German and one standout Japanese. Canada’s Jean-Francois Boulianne opened with a smooth routine, followed by Spain’s Alberto Moya, who impressed with original tricks performed in a unique style, taking the lead with 80.17 points. Germany’s Dustyn Alt then wowed the crowd with spinning tricks, scoring 86.00 to claim the top spot temporarily.
Flatland veteran Alexandre Jumelin made a few minor errors that kept him off the podium, finishing 6th, while fellow Frenchman Julien Baran placed 8th. Second-place qualifier Varo Hernandez delivered an impressive ride, yet at this elite level, it left him agonizingly less than a point from a medal. Canada’s Jean William Prevost followed with an incredibly fast spinning original performance, featuring numerous rear-wheel tricks, earning 89.33 points — with only one rider remaining.
The spotlight was on Yu Katagiri as the final rider. After watching the others, he knew only his most challenging tricks would secure the gold. Already a master of Flatland, the Japanese rider has now reached the pinnacle, claiming the 2025 UCI BMX Freestyle Flatland World Championship title.
