Tulsa BMX Headquarters hosts riders preparing for Paris Olympics

The U.S. BMX Racing team held some of its final practices at the USA BMX Headquarters & Hall of Fame & Museum in Tulsa before leaving for the 2024 Olympic Games. Two men and three women qualified for the U.S. BMX racing team that will compete in the games that start July 26 and end Aug. 11

Jamie Staff, USA Cycling’s director of BMX, described the Tulsa facility as one of the best in the world.

Staff won gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in team sprint cycling for Britain and said managing BMX programs and working for USA Cycling is a full circle moment for him. He said the team is privileged to practice at the BMX Headquarters.

“We (USA Cycling) kind of have a partnership with USA BMX, just because this facility is so awesome,” Staff said. “We’re basically coming through here before the riders go to Paris for the Olympics, just to do a final preparation and just do some media stuff.”

The Olympians weren’t the only ones taking advantage of the world-class facility. A group of children attended a summer camp at the headquarters as the Olympians prepared for their Olympic sendoff on Tuesday.

“I mean, we all started just like they did, and it’s cool to see all of them out there and enjoying riding their bikes just like we do,” said Daleny Vaughn, a member of the U.S. Olympic BMX racing team.

Vaughn, a 23-year-old from Tucson, Arizona, began racing when she was 3. She said her parents ran the BMX track in Tucson and that racing was something her family always did together.

Kamren Larsen, another member of the U.S. Olympic BMX racing team, began racing at 5 and said he always wanted to be a professional athlete. Both he and Vaughn are headed to the Olympics for the first time.

The two said they’re feeling “all the emotions” as they prepare for the 2024 Olympics at the BMX Headquarters and cruise the streets of downtown Tulsa.

“Obviously, this is a once in every four year opportunity and could be once in a lifetime,” Larsen said.

Staff said the team has a good chance at doing well and that he has high hopes for them. Team members have placed well in recent competitions, with Vaughn winning bronze at the 2024 UCI BMX World Champions and Larsen winning gold at the 2023 Pan American Games.

Olympic veterans Alise Willoughby and Felicia Stancil are also on the team, and Cameron Wood is joining the team for his first Olympics.

“They’re in good shape,” Larsen said. “At this point, you’re just so close you can taste it. They just want to get there and race.”

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