May 11, 2008 (Copenhagen, Denmark) – Just three months before Bicycle Motocross (BMX) makes its Olympic debut in Beijing this August, American Donny Robinson (Napa, Calif.) won the third round of the UCI BMX Supercross World Cup series on Saturday.

Along with compatriot Kyle Bennett (Conroe, Texas), Robinson was one of two Americans to qualify for the finals. Bennett finished fourth behind runner-up Jared Graves (AUS) and bronze medalist Maris Strombergs (LAT).

Bennett’s fourth-place effort yielded enough points to finish the 2007-08 season as the top American in the international rankings. Provided he’s ranked in the top five overall in the UCI rankings following the World Championships later this month, Bennett will have met the criteria to receive an automatic nomination to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team. Currently, Bennett is ranked third in the world behind Marc Willers (NZL) and Graves.

With his victory on Saturday, Robinson now leads the World Cup standings after three races. Two more remain in Salt Lake City, Sept. 12-13 and Frejus, France, Oct. 10-11.

Also on Saturday, women’s U.S. Olympic hopeful Arielle Martin (Pleasant Grove, Utah) finished fifth in the women’s race as the only American to qualify for the final. The women’s event was won by Shanaze Reade (GBR), while Letitia le Corguille (FRA) and Anne-Caroline Chausson (FRA) were second and third respectively. Sarah Walker (NZL) was fourth.

The final major BMX race before the Olympic Games is the 2008 UCI BMX World Championships, set for May 29 – June 1 in Taiyuan, China.

Results

Women

1. Shanaze Reade (Gbr) 40.664
2. Laetitia Le Corguille (Fra) 0.451
3. Anne Caroline Chausson (Fra) 0.479
4. Sarah Walker (NZl) 1.102
5. Arielle Martin (USA) 1.536
6. Lieke Klaus (Ned) 2.284
7. Maria Gabriela Diaz (Arg) 2.518
8. Amelie Despeaux (Fra) 2.643

Men

1. Donny Robinson (USA) 36.38
2. Jared Graves (Aus) 0.168
3. Maris Strombergs (Lat) 0.295
4. Kyle Bennett (USA) 0.552
5. Ivo Lakucs (Lat) 0.969
6. Jonathan Suarez (Ven) 1.593
7. Edzus Treimans (Lat) 12.375
8. Michal Prokop (Cze) 20.831

Qualifying

1. Damien Godet (Fra) 36.219
2. Thomas Allier (Fra) 0.286
3. Michal Prokop (Cze) 0.294
4. Luke Madill (Aus) 0.503
5. Maris Strombergs (Lat) 0.546
6. Kyle Bennett (USA) 0.587
7. Mike Day (USA) 0.858
8. Donny Robinson (USA) 0.921
9. Raymon Van Der Biezen (Ned) 0.928
10. David Herman (USA) 0.949
11. Roger Rinderknecht (Sui) 1.105
12. Ivo Lakucs (Lat) 1.108
13. Martijn Scherpen (Ned) 1.180
14. Ivo Van Der Putten (Ned) 1.205
15. Jonathan Suarez (Ven) 1.300
16. Micael Cesar (Por) 1.434
17. Rob Van Den Wildenberg (Ned) 1.556
18. Pablo Gutierrez (Fra) 1.582
19. Steven Cisar (USA) 1.599
20. Thomas Hamon (Fra) 1.605
21. Robert De Wilde (Ned) 1.613
22. Kristopher Fox (USA) 1.616
23. Arturs Matisons (Lat) 1.625
24. Andres Jiminez Caicedo ( Col) 1.737
25. Sam Willoughby (Aus) 1.825
26. Carlos Oquendo (Col) 1.877
27. Nicholas Long (USA) 1.881
28. Jared Graves (Aus) 1.941
29. Tons Skyjins (Lat) 1.950
30. Yvan Lapraz (Sui) 1.982
31. Sander Bisseling (Ned) 2.173
32. Jason Rogers (USA) 2.210
33. Ramiro Marino (Arg) 2.245
34. S I Salazar Lopez (Col) 2.254
35. Lukas Tamme (Cze) 2.316
36. Arnaud Dubois (Bel) 2.338
37. Bubba Harris (USA) 2.390
38. Edzus Treimans (Lat) 2.416
39. Jason Richardson (USA) 2.534
40. Kamakazi (Aus) 2.654
41. Quentin Caleyron (Fra) 2.679
42. Roy Van Den Berg (Ned) 2.683
43. Henrik Baltzersen (Den) 2.721
44. Javier Colombo (Arg) 2.949
45. Tyler Brown (USA) 2.982
46. Cristian Becerine (Arg) 3.022
47. Jordy Van Der Heijden (Ned) 3.186
48. Danny Caluag (USA) 3.192
49. David Graf (Sui) 3.192
50. Renaud Blanc (Sui) 3.448
51. Moana Moo Caille (Fra) 3.567
52. Martijn Jaspers (Ned) 3.688
53. Brandon Meadows (USA) 3.879
54. Pascal Seydoux (Sui) 3.879
55. Manuel De Vecchi (Ita) 3.905
56. Emilio Falla (Ecu) 4.138
57. Kenny Verstrepen (Bel) 4.243
58. Julien Godet (Fra) 4.281
59. Christophe Cordier (Fra) 4.307
60. Petr Muhlhans (Cze) 4.331
61. Remi Riccardi (Fra) 4.46
62. Frank Heijne (Ned) 4.567
63. Maik Baier (Ger) 4.764
64. Marc Willers (NZl) 4.769
65. Jose Diaz Montana (Col) 4.889
66. Masahiro Sampei (Jpn) 5.069
67. Daniel Schlang (Ger) 5.196
68. Geoffrey Lachenal (Sui) 5.483
69. Andrea Giovanelli (Ita) 5.589
70. Dean Holdstock (Rsa) 6.055
71. Jerome Lange (Bel) 6.239
72. Mauro Paiusco (Ita) 6.386
73. Klaus Andresen (Den) 6.731
74. Rendell Romero (Ven) 7.085
75. Johan Fransson (Swe) 7.542
76. Christian Bramming (Den) 9.127
77. Desmond Tessemaker (Ned) 11.048
DSQ Edgar Bisseling (Ned)
DSQ Axel Keller (Sui)
DSQ L Alvarez De Lara (Esp)
DSQ Florent Boutte (Fra)
DSQ Vergani Carrizo (Esp)
DSQ Michal Polansk (Cze)
DSQ Jasper Verkuijl (Ned)
DNF Sebastian Matamoros (Swe)
DNF Khalen Young (Aus)
DNS Fausto Endara (Ecu)
DNS Joey Bradford (USA)