Sarah Walker (BMX rider)

For other people named Sarah Walker, see Sarah Walker (disambiguation).

Sarah Walker

File:Podium female.jpg Walker (right) at the 2007 Supercross World Cup
Personal information
Full name	Sarah Louise Walker
Nickname	Shazza
Born	(1988-07-10) 10 July 1988 New Zealand
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	74 kg (163 lb)
Team information
Current team	Team NZ
Discipline	BMX
Role	Racer
Rider type	Off road
Medal record Representing New Zealand BMX Olympic Games 2012 London Women's BMX World Championships 2011 Copenhagen Women's BMX 2010 Pietermaritzburg Women's BMX 2009 Adelaide Women's BMX 2009 Adelaide Women's Cruiser 2008 Taiyuan Women's BMX 2008 Taiyuan Women's Cruiser 2007 Victoria Women's BMX 2007 Victoria Women's Cruiser 2006 São Paulo Women's BMX Junior 2006 São Paulo Women's Cruiser Junior 2005 Paris Women's Cruiser Junior Supercross World Cup 2007 Women's BMX 2008 Women's BMX
Infobox last updated on Aug 4, 2010

Sarah Walker (born 10 July 1988) is a New Zealand BMX racer of Māori and European descent. She won silver in the Women's BMX at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Walker was born in Whakatane in the Bay of Plenty, and grew up in nearby Kawerau. She attended Kawerau South School and Trident High School in Whakatane.

In the 2008 season UCI Rounds, Walker won seven races, came 2nd in one race and didn't race two races. She was ranked number one in the world by the UCI in 2008, and was one of the favourites to win the BMX women's event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, in the end she finished 4th.

Walker has won a total of twelve New Zealand 20" titles from 1999 to 2011.

On 25 July 2009, Walker won the BMX World Championship in Adelaide, Australia in both the Elite Women and the Elite Cruiser Women events.

At the 2010 BMX World Championship in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, Walker finished second in the Elite Women's event, with first place going to Shanaze Reade. A crash during the Elite Cruiser event meant that Walker was not able hold on to her 2009 championship title.

In 2011, Walker made the podium in three out of four World Cup Events to win the Overall World Cup Title, winning the Papendal Supercross in the Netherlands, 2nd at the Test Event in London and 3rd in South Africa. The fourth event was in USA where she finished 6th.

At the 2012 Supercross in Norway, Walker dislocated her shoulder which almost put her out of contention for the Olympics in London. After 6 weeks, she had to qualify for the Olympics at the World Championships in Birmingham, England where she did so with a 5th in the semi final.

As well as competing in BMX events around the world, Walker has also been a sports ambassador for Beef + Lamb New Zealand since 2008. She is a sponsored rider for Avanti Bikes, using their line of ABD BMX bikes when racing.

Olympic career

Walker started her Olympic career in Beijing at the 2008 Summer Olympics, in the Women's BMX. In the medals race, she ran a time of 38.805, finishing 4th. In the same event at the 2012 Summer Olympics she got a silver medal, with a time of 38.644.