Tory Nyhaug wins 13th Canadian BMX title after Rio disappointment
'Hard emotionally to come back from the Olympics,' says B.C. native
Tory Nyhaug has won his 13th title at the BMX Canadian Championships in Calgary, less than a week after he returned from a disappointing Olympic Games in Brazil.
The 24-year-old from Coquitlam, B.C., missed out on a bronze medal in Rio de Janeiro by 0.157 seconds in the men's BMX final on Aug. 19.
But he "dug deep" to take the men's elite title on Saturday, beating out James Palmer, who took silver, and Gaby Malenfant who finished third.
"I came into the weekend pretty tired, and it was hard emotionally to come back from the Olympics and get right back into it," said Nyhaug.
"But I'm happy I was able to come out with the win," he added.
Canadian national champion! 🇨🇦 Thanks for the love from all the home fans this weekend, you're awesome Canada <a href="https://t.co/D1IXZNBHgC">pic.twitter.com/D1IXZNBHgC</a>
—@Tnyhaug49<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/canbmxchamps?src=hash">#canbmxchamps</a> Podium, Elite Men <a href="https://t.co/0qMrPEKHdo">pic.twitter.com/0qMrPEKHdo</a>
—@CyclingCanadaNyhaug, who won gold in men's BMX at last summer's Pan Am Games in Toronto, finished fifth in Rio and 18th at the 2012 London Olympics.
The two-time Olympian has experienced an up-and-down 2016 season, having won his share of time trials on the World Cup circuit but crashing on his qualifying run at the world championships in Medellin, Colombia, at the end of May.
Olympian <a href="https://twitter.com/Tnyhaug49">@Tnyhaug49</a> shares how the great outdoors shaped him. What's your story that defines Canada? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CBC2017?src=hash">#CBC2017</a> <a href="https://t.co/sFz9txOdax">pic.twitter.com/sFz9txOdax</a>
—@CBCNewsWith files from the CBC's Meghann Dionne