| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (2005-03-29) 29 March 2005 (age 19) |
| Team information | |
| Discipline | BMX racing |
Leila Walker (born 29 March 2005) is a BMX racer from New Zealand. She became New Zealand national champion in 2024 and was selected for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Early life
She is from Cambridge, New Zealand. She started BMX, inspired by watching her cousins racing, when she was six years-old. She attended Cambridge Middle School and was a prolific winner at age-group level. She has won her sixth consecutive age-group world title in 2018 at the age of 13 years-old.
Career
Walker won on her debut in the junior elite competition at the UCI BMX Racing World Cup round in Bogotá. She won her first elite women’s New Zealand national title in 2024.
Competing at the UCI BMX World Championships in Rock Hill, South Carolina, she finished seventh in the elite grand final, which earned a Paris Olympic Games qualification spot for New Zealand. She was subsequently selected for the 2024 Summer Olympics in July 2024.
Personal life
She is not related to compatriot rider Sarah Walker.
References
- "Leila Walker". Eurosport. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- "QUICK QUESTIONS WITH LEILA WALKER". the bloombox. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- Iremonger, Sophie (9 August 2017). "Cambridge BMX rider wins 5th consecutive world title". cambridgenews.nz. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- McFadden, Suzanne (12 July 2018). "Just 13, and a six-time world champion". newsroom.co.nz. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- "Two rising kiwi stars named for BMX Racing at the Paris Olympic Games". cyclingnewzealand. 8 July 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- "BMX New Zealand national championships 2024: Cambridge's Leila Walker claims big title". NZ Herals. 19 March 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- "BMX rookies shine at world championships". nzsportswire. 23 May 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- McMillan, Cameron (1 August 2024). "Olympics 2024: Day six New Zealand athletes and events in action, how to watch in NZ, livestreaming". NZ Herald. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- "Double World Champion – Leila Walker". bmx.net.nz. 23 August 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2024.