Life of Reilly has a silver lining after medal success in Munich
KIERAN REILLY vowed to inflict revenge on red-hot rival Anthony Jeanjean after clinching a stunning silver medal at the European Championships.
The Newcastle BMX ace, 21, finished second behind the Frenchman in the freestyle final after pulling off a dizzying routine in Munich.
Reilly racked up a second run score of 92.30 to haul himself on to the podium but was unable to eclipse Jeanjean, 24, whose thrilling effort of 93.60 propelled him to gold.
The Tyneside rider has nothing but admiration for Jeanjean but insists he will only bounce back stronger next year.
Reilly, who landed the world’s first BMX triple flair in January, said: “I cannot fault Anthony and his performance but I will definitely be back next year to chase his jersey.
“I would have loved to be coming home with that jersey but that is now another goal to reach for.
“It feels amazing – the goal for me this weekend was to podium so to be right in the middle of it was great.
“On the second run, I knew I had to take that risk to beat some of the other riders out there.
“I went out there, took that risk, and some of it paid off.
“Taking those risks is what I had to do and for it to pay off, I am absolutely stoked.”
Reilly sailed through qualifying in third on Thursday evening after finishing behind Jeanjean and teammate Shaun Gornall.
Fellow British star Declan Brooks, who bagged a brilliant Olympic bronze in Tokyo last summer, was unable to progress to the final after crashing on his second run.
That removed one of Reilly’s main rivals ahead of the Saturday night showpiece and in front of a bumper crowd at Munich’s 1972 Olympic Park he delivered when it mattered to clamber on to the podium.
Cycling is one of nine sports taking place at the multi-sport championships.