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Vincent Leygonie has been crowned South Africa’s first-ever BMX Freestyle Champion as he won the 2023 Park Lines BMX Tournament that took place at the Stoneridge Skatepark on 27 May. We caught up with the champ to get his thoughts on contest, what the win means to him, future plans, and more…
Take us through your experience at this year’s Park Lines BMX Tournament?
It was one of the best experiences, I feel like this year we got to session and ride more with friends from all over. During the contest day, it was a mixed bag of happiness and good times! To be honest, the whole day was amazing and it ended with a surreal feeling after winning the event!
How did you prepare mentally and physically for this year’s comp?
I was in the gym as I’ve been for the last few years and spent probably two times the amount of riding I normally do. Mentally I took a knock, I put myself under so much pressure from three weeks out until the competition week. I had a chat with everyone around me to help relax my mind and the last week I prepared myself to have the most fun. I’ll be honest, I think I had the most fun riding than I have this whole year.
What did it mean to you to finally be able to compete in a sanctioned South African BMX Freestyle Championship competition?
It’s a foot in the right direction. To me it means we have more opportunities to go overseas and ride bikes, more opportunities for kids to see we have an official way of becoming the best in the country. For years kids and up-and-coming riders didn’t have much to work for, but now they can battle to qualify for Olympics and more.
What do you think this event will now do for both the riders and the sport in South Africa?
For riders, I think it will breathe a fresh breath into all of us as this is a different style of event than we have all experienced. For South Africa, I think this could open more doors for sponsors and communities to invest into facilities to help create the future Olympians.
What do you feel needs to be done to grow the sport of BMX Freestyle in South
We need facilities, that provide a safe environment for kids to go and ride and progress, as well as facilities that compare to the size of the World Series of events. These facilities will bring more riders, help create more events and friendly competition to push progression.
Give us some insight into your final run that enabled you to win the title?
I had a lot in the tank in terms of tricks for my last two runs. However, I physically didn’t have enough power to pull all of these off. I went back to my comfort zone, and really tried to put down big enough tricks to impress the judges, but also made sure I was going higher and faster and had more fun than anyone else. Somehow pulled off a good enough run to win.
What was it like to ride the legendary Stoneridge Skatepark again, and how does it suit your style of riding?
Stoneridge will forever be one of my favourite parks to ride. It fits my riding style, like an old glove fits a hand. It encourages speed and style (everything I love). It’s not forgiving on skin when you crash, so it forces you to be clean and make sure you always land rubber side down. It just has the right amount of flow to feel like a set of trails in the concrete jungle.
What does it mean to you to be crowned the first-ever South African Champion?
This question is the hardest to answer, it’s everything to me. It’s meant more than I thought it could mean to me. I feel like I’ve made five-year-old Vin’s dreams come true. It’s been a few days now and I still don’t think the reality of it all has sunk in.
What plans and goals do you now have for your riding career going forward?
I would love to get out to few UCI C1 events this year potentially get out to World Championships. However going forward, I’d like to push a few limits and continue to have fun on all bikes.
What advice would you give anyone wanting to get into the sport of BMX Freestyle?
Go out and buy any BMX bike, go to your local park, street, school, friend’s house and go have fun! The best part of our sport is we get to have fun no matter the age. I still have the same thoughts in the morning as I did as a kid, which is “let’s go ride bicycles with my friends”. But, simply have fun, be brave and send it.
Any shout-outs?
Big shout outs the event sponsors. To LW Mag, without you none of this would have happened this year! To Dragon Energy for always making sure I feel good and energised every day, my Girlfriend for not getting mad at me for skipping important things to go ride my kiddies bike. My Dad for being the voice of clarity! Then to everyone who sported at the event and who support riders living their dreams.
Photos by Eric Palmer.
