Donny Robinson

Olympic Experience/UCI World Championships Results

• 2008 Olympic bronze medalist, Beijing, China
• 2009 UCI BMX World Champion, elite men, Adelaide, Australia
• 2006 UCI BMX World Champion, elite cruiser, Sao Paolo, Brazil
• 2001 UCI BMX World Champion, junior men and junior cruiser

National Championship Experience

• 1st place — 2007 USA Cycling National BMX Champion, Waterford Oaks, Michigan

Career Highlights

• 2009 — UCI #1 World Ranked Rider
• 2008 — UCI #1 World Ranked Rider
• 14th place — 2010-11 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup, Papendal, Netherlands
• 1st place — Olympic Test event, Beijing, China
• 1st place — 2007 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup, Beijing, China
• 1st place — 2006 UCI World Cup Series, overall
• 1st place — 2006 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup, Fréjus, France
• 1st place — 2006 Boulder Dam National 1st place, Boulder City, Nevada
• 1st place — 2006 Golden State National, California
• 1st place — 2006 Stars ‘n Stripes National, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• 1st place — 2007 Freedom National, Woodbridge, Virginia
• 2nd place — 2006 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup, San Jose, California

Points of Interest

• Donny was the first-ever USA Cycling BMX National Champion at the inaugural event in 2007.

• In 2006, Donny became the first BMX athlete in history to collectively win world titles in all four championship race categories. In 2001, he won the UCI junior men’s world championship in the cruiser class (26” wheels) and the standard 20” class. He followed up those victories by clinching the rainbow stripes for the Supercross and Elite Men's Cruiser categories in 2006.

• A former competitive gymnast for eight years, Donny credits his former sport for building his upper-body and leg strength, as well as teaching him how to crash.

Personal

ORain soaked much of the anticipated world debut of BMX at the 2008 Olympics when live broadcasts were diverted to much more reliable re-broadcasts of events that happened earlier in the day. Postponed races commenced virtually under the radar of American audiences, who may have learned about the USA's mighty potential in this homegrown sport once the medals started adding up.
 
The sun shone brilliantly for the BMX finals on August 20, 2008, and Donny Robinson lined up among the best BMX racers in the world - just as he'd done hundreds of times before - to take aim at gold. In a race that starts from a dead standstill and lasts less than two minutes, racers must perform flawlessly on a course that features step-ups, tabletops, double jumps, berms, hairpin turns, and straightaways. No two tracks are alike although they can have similar obstacles and therefore, results often depend not only on a racer's own abilities but also on the abilities of his rivals.
 
At just 5-foot-5, Donny is the shortest competitor on the international BMX circuit – a trait many see as a disadvantage in a sometimes contact sport. But what he lacks in size is more than compensated for in drive and determination. He proved this by finishing on the Olympic podium in Beijing, when he earned the bronze medal.
 
Donny first began racing BMX bikes at the Napa Valley BMX Track when he was just six years old. By the age of eight, he captured his first national-level win. From there, Donny began to progress through the ranks until turning pro late in 2001. Four years later, he illustrated his strength and consistency at the international level when he captured the overall UCI BMX Supercross World Cup title in 2006.
 
Donny enjoyed a breakout year in 2006, when he won nearly every race he entered. He has since gone on to become the only person to win world titles in all four BMX race categories, and has become one of the most popular BMX riders in the world – serving as a pitchman for high-profile Olympic sponsors such as Nike, Kelloggs, Hersheys and AT&T.
 
Even though training and racing takes up most of his time, Donny finds the time to participate in his other passions which include tennis, golf, singing and dancing.