Great Britain won gold and silver medals in the BMX races on Friday. In the women's race at the Tokyo Olympics, Bethany Schriever won a close race against two-time Olympic champion Mariana Pajon (Colombia), while Kai Whyte took silver in the men's race behind Dutch rider Nique Kimman.

The men's final first featured Kimman and Romain Mahieu (France), the top qualifiers from the semi-finals. However, Kimman and the 21-year-old Whyte started the fastest, and the duo took the finishing position on the first corner. Colombia's Carlos Alberto Ramirez Yepes won his second bronze medal, having also finished third in Rio. Maheu finished in sixth place.

And when the women lined up on the pavement filled with jumps, banks, rollers, and berms, the game was decided.

Schriever, a 22-year-old British rider who had been putting in powerful performances up until the semi-finals, took the lead early after the start hill and fought hard not to give it away, but it was no easy task to hold off the more experienced Pajon. But it wasn't easy to hold off the more experienced Pajon, the Colombian who won gold in both 2012 and 2016, quickly closed the gap, but Schriever held her off at the finish line.

"I didn't know if I was far ahead or close, so when I felt her, I just thought, 'Smooth, smooth.'"

"I'm just so emotional. I did my best today and to be rewarded in the form of a gold medal is honestly very emotional. I kept my composure today and played simply. I'm just so emotional.

Dutch rider Merel Smulders won the bronze medal, bringing another medal to the family after her sister Laura finished third in 2012. American Felicia Stancil finished in fourth place, just outside the medal standings.

The semi-finals and finals were held 45 minutes later than originally scheduled. However, the rain held off and most of the water in Ariake Urban Sports Park was removed before the competition began.

Both the men's and women's teams had already been narrowed down to 16 competitors before the semi-finals, but were again reduced to eight after three runs in each pair of semi-finals, which were held just before the medal run. A fall in the final run of the men's semifinals prevented the Rio Olympics gold medalists from competing in the medal race.

Australia's Saya Sakakibara fell in the third semi-final heat, missing the final by just one place.