- Australian Natalya Diehm celebrated her bronze medal in style
- He finished third in the BMX final at the La Concorde skate park in Paris
- First Australian woman to win a medal at a major BMX competition
Australian BMX star Natalya Diehm has become an instant sporting cult heroine after drinking a beer and enjoying some McDonald’s chicken nuggets following her bronze medal win in Paris.
Diehm, 26, has overcome five knee reconstructions in what has been a checkered career on two wheels, not to mention dislocated shoulders and broken wrists and elbows.
In one of the happiest stories of the Games, persistence paid off for Diehm as she made history as the first Australian woman to win a BMX freestyle medal at any major competition.
And when offered a beer by reporters, the Queensland man celebrated accordingly, while fans at Olympic venues are not allowed to get alcohol.
“I don’t drink beer, but I’ll do it for everyone,” he said to a chorus of cheers from reporters.
“I thought about doing a shoey… but it’s probably not appropriate.”
Diehm also confirmed that, like many athletes, she found the food options in the Olympic village frustrating as the Games shifted to a much more vegetarian range of options for competitors.
“I don’t want to eat that (vegan options) again. I’m happy with my Macca’s,” she said.
Australian BMX star Natalya Diehm has become an instant sporting cult heroine after drinking a beer (pictured) and enjoying some McDonald’s nuggets shortly after winning a bronze medal in Paris.
Persistence paid off for Diehm when she made history as the first Australian woman to win a BMX freestyle medal at a major competition.
Diehm’s candidness comes at a time when alcohol has been in short supply at many Olympic events in Paris and organizers have pushed to make the Games family-friendly.
The presence of multiple “dry” venues has baffled many fans, who have resorted to drinking in bars across the capital before and after events.
Meanwhile, when it came to her dynamic performance at La Concorde skate park, Diehm was thrilled to be creating her own slice of history.
“We (Australia) have never medalled in any World Cup event,” he said.
“To do it here, on the biggest stage in the world, is something that will go down in history. I’ve written history. It’s crazy.”
‘I see it (the bronze medal) as if it were rose gold. It’s beautiful, I think it’s even better than gold, I’m not going to lie.’
China’s Yawen Deng (92.60) won gold in the women’s BMX final over American Perris Benegas (90.70).
Tokyo gold medallist and fellow Australian Logan Martin put aside his personal disappointment at losing back-to-back titles to celebrate Diehm’s triumph.
“It’s incredible what he’s done,” he said.
“She just wanted to get on the podium, and she got on the biggest podium in history. I’m very proud of her for now having achieved an Olympic medal.”