Worthington insists there are no regrets after Olympic title defence ends early

Charlotte Worthington insisted she had no regrets after the defence of her Olympic BMX freestyle title ended prematurely in qualification.

It's said winning an Olympic title is hard but defending it so much tougher, Worthington can certainly empathise after a tearful elimination. She did her best to accentuate the positive after a difficult few months but you could see how much it hurt.

In Tokyo she became the first-ever BMX Freestyle gold medallist - and produced a trick never previously seen to do it - a dizzying, gravity-defying, heart-in-mouth 360 backflip that left rivals shaking their head in disbelief and admiration. Needing to finish in the top nine of 12 riders in qualifying, Worthington's two runs at left her second from bottom in 11th.

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"There's a lot of emotions, I'm really proud but still gutted that the competition doesn't go on another day," she said, who is one of over 1,000 elite athletes on UK Sport’s National Lottery-funded World Class Programme, allowing them to train full time, have access to the world’s best coaches and benefit from pioneering medical support – which has been vital on their pathway to the Paris 2024 Games. .

"I've done three years as an Olympic champion - the first one ever in BMX freestyle - and it's been a hell of a ride. I wasn't quite in the battle, other than the one against myself. My personal goal was to become a two-time Olympian and I've done that. Sport is about setting dreams and goals you are not even sure you can achieve, and I do believe that I’ve done that.”

At the start of 2023,