Tory Nyhaug: Instant Profile

By Callum Ng, CBC Sports

B.C. boy Tory Nyhaug has formidable leg power, and because a BMX start is so important, that strength wins him medal after high-profile medal.

Nyhaug is a world championships silver medallist from 2014.

Famous moment

Winning 2015 Pan Am Games gold after only a handful of warm-up competitions following foot surgery the previous November.

He said it...

• "One of the key moments in a race is if you get a good start, and you're pedaling down the start hill and you realize you're ahead of guys it's a big relief because the start is very important."

What they're saying about him...

• "Tory's had an exceptional list of injuries. But Tory's an exceptionally tough person, and his healing process is beyond comprehension. If anybody's going to get injured, Tory's the one who can handle it." - Ken Cools, Canadian BMX coach to Sean Fitz-Gerald

Strengths

As his coach said, Nyhaug is unbelievably resilient through injury. He ruptured his spleen, for the second time, then went to London 2012 only 11 weeks later. He has also famously broken nearly 20 bones in his lifetime.

Weaknesses

Well, maybe it's not such a good thing to have to prove toughness through crashes and injuries. It's probably better to avoid them.

Fun fact

He has been best friends with American BMX Olympian Connor Fields since they were nine.

Hometown

Coquitlam, B.C.

Lives in

Vancouver, B.C.