A Jolly good show on the track

Jump for joy: Josh Jolly has been riding BMX bikes since he was a toddler and has a goal to become World Champion. Photo: SUPPLIED

SEVENTEEN-year-old Josh Jolly is leaving his tyre marks on the 2024 UCI BMX Racing World Cup.

Jolly completed rounds one and two in Rotorua, New Zealand with the under 23 class last weekend, where he made the finals both days, and was on the podium in third place on the last day.

This weekend, he will compete in the junior elite class of the 2024 Oceania BMX Racing Championships in Brisbane, and then rounds three and four of the World Cup in the same city just one week later.

“It feels good to get these first races done and be up near the front,” he said.

“Now that I’ve been at the World Cup, I know what to expect, and mentally this will help me in the next rounds.

“I’m looking forward to racing in Brisbane and then in United States. I hope to be on the podium each round.”

The final two World Cup rounds are in Tulsa, Oklahoma in April, and Jolly will stay in the USA for a while longer to take part in some of the USA BMX series.

“He has high hopes for victory this year after the fantastic year he had last year,” said dad, Wayne Jolly.

“Next weekend, at the Oceania Championships, he wants to improve on his third position.

“He has a goal to finish as high as he can in the World Cup series, and hopefully he can win the World Championships.”

Jolly started racing BMX bikes at just two years old and was named the AusCycling Men’s Junior BMX Rider of the Year in 2022 before becoming the Australian Junior Elite Champion in 2023.

He is an ambassador of both the Australian BMX Hall of Fame, and Central Highlands Water.