Grigg puts science on fast track

THE race for BMX Olympic gold will be decided in the first 1.2 seconds of the final, according to the world’s leading authority on the sport.

To the casual observer, BMX is a helter-skelter world of zany thrills and spills, but for Josie Grigg – the world’s foremost expert on the biomechanics of a BMX race – it’s a beautiful science.

Grigg has just finished her PhD on the biomechanics of the BMX gate start.

With 60 per cent of BMX races won by the rider to hit the first jump, her research out of the Bond University Institute of Health and Science could be the difference between winning Olympic gold or missing the final completely.

“The first three cranks are vital,” Grigg (pictured) said.

“It’s a 30-second race, and supercross – which is the Olympic discipline – starts on an eight-metre high ramp.

“If you get to the bottom of the ramp first, you get to pick the line into the first jump and whoever lands the first jump has a 60 per cent likelihood of winning. The start is critical.

“In sport research, a lot of information goes unpublished, especially in cycling, because it could give someone else a competitive advantage.”

Grigg is the first person in the world to quantitatively research the start of a BMX race in conjunction with Cycling Australia and the Australian Institute of Sport.

With so much importance on starts, Grigg has become the “BMX Biomechanist” to Australian riders and been contacted by international coaches looking for help.

“Working with the high performance group at Cycling Australia has given me a really good foundation,” she said.

“We want to build a resource that comes with coaching, education and web resources ... based on evidence. There is a lot of misinformation on what training and race techniques work.”