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How a remote Utah business park became the center of BMX Freestyle in the USA

Published

5 months ago

June 26, 2025

How a remote Utah business park became the center of BMX Freestyle in the USA

Hannah Roberts has won just about every major women’s professional BMX freestyle title out there. Not just one of every kind. Closer to nearly all that exist.

Roberts, 23, won her sixth consecutive UCI BMX World Championship in December, making her the only woman to have ever won that event. She won gold at both Pan American Games in which the discipline was offered (2019 and ’23). And last year, when X Games first made women’s BMX freestyle part of its program, she won that gold medal, too.

This week, Salt Lake City will host the X Games’ BMX, skateboarding and motoX events, and Roberts can’t wait. It’s not just the prospect of winning more hardware that has her hyped, but also something much rarer.

“This will probably be the only event in my life,” she said, “that I’ll be able to sleep in my own bed and then go and compete.”

Roberts moved to Utah in March to train at a facility started by a local dad who wanted to give his daughter, an up-and-coming BMX racer, a better place to practice. In doing so, Roberts may become a BMX trailblazer once again. COR Athlete, the facility built last year by Joe Sirlin in a remote office park in South Jordan, has become the hub for USA Cycling’s BMX freestyle teams. Roberts was the first pro athlete to move to the area to train there, but Sirlin said he believes she won’t be the last.

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) BMX rider Hannah Roberts at COR BMX Park in South Jordan on Thursday, May 15, 2025.

“We have multiple other people exploring relocating here full-time to train and to live in Utah,” Sirlin said. “So our goal is to help get athletes like that here, but also help get the next generation a place to evolve as an athlete.”

Building a solution in South Jordan

The trip to France with the Team USA BMX squad was supposed to be a learning experience for Sirlin’s teenage daughter, Keir. Yet it was Sirlin who got an education.

A former construction foreman and facility and event manager for various major sporting events — including Formula 1 and Moto GP races, PGA tournaments, Super Bowls and X Games — Sirlin couldn’t help but notice the ramps at the 2023 World Cup Fise in Montpellier were much larger than anything he’d seen in the United States. He asked Ryan Nyquist, a BMX legend and Team USA’s coach at the time, about the discrepancy.

“When we first saw these big ramps, I asked him, just person to person, ‘Hey, why does the United States not have anything this big for the riders to work on?’ Because we don’t, and Europe does. Australia, Japan, China — all these countries have these facilities, but we do not. And I asked him how we could change that.”

This April 2018 photo provided by USA Cycling shows Hannah Roberts speaking at the UCI Freestyle BMX World Cup in Hiroshima, Japan. The 16-year-old Roberts, already one of the best BMX freestyle riders in the world, is helping blaze a trail for women in the Olympics. (Kyle Carlson/USA Cycling via AP)

Nyquist said USA Cycling had struggled to come up with the funding to build a World Cup-caliber course. So, Sirlin came up with a solution.

Calling upon his contacts in the construction industry, he facilitated the construction of a temporary course inside a newly built business park off the Mountain View Corridor in South Jordan, minutes from where he and his family had moved in 2021. He called in heralded BMX park builder Nate Wessel to design the course with input from the athletes who would represent Team USA in Paris, including Roberts, who was training in Nyquist’s backyard. She requested a spine — two ramps connected at their apex by a small ledge) and a step-over (where the landing area is higher than the takeoff area).

“Those two things freak me out most on courses,” she said. “So I’ve got to ride them a lot, I guess.”

More BMX riders are calling Utah home

At the time, the course was meant as a quick fix to prepare Team USA athletes for the Paris 2024 Olympics. When it opened in March 2024, Olympic athletes — including Roberts — traveled there from around the country for training camps every two weeks until the Summer Games began in late July. When they left France in early August, they brought back four top-eight finishes. That included a silver medal won by Perris Benegas in a women’s competition that saw Roberts, the favorite after taking silver with a broken foot in the event’s debut in Tokyo, place eighth despite breaking her hand and injuring her shoulder in a crash during warmups.

With those results, USA Cycling was in no hurry to see the course dismantled. In January, it extended its partnership with COR-Athlete for at least another year.

“This facility has been a game-changer for our BMX Freestyle program,” Jim Miller, the chief of sports performance, said in a news release announcing the extension. “The world-class facility and the partnership with COR-Athlete enabled our team to push their limits and perform at the highest level on the world stage. We’re thrilled to continue this collaboration and build on the success we achieved in 2024.”

Likewise, Roberts was reluctant to lose her favorite practice facility. So, she rented out her house in North Carolina to make a new home out West.

“When I finally pulled the trigger, I didn’t know X Games was coming,” said Roberts, now one of Clearfield’s newest residents. “So it was legit this. My whole focus was this park and trying to, one, help it succeed and be able to stay around, but also just be able to train here.”

Roberts has accomplished both.

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) BMX rider Hannah Roberts at COR BMX Park in South Jordan on Thursday, May 15, 2025.

She trains at the facility about three hours a day, she said, but she spends many more hours working behind the scenes. Sirlin pays her to be part office manager, part event director and part youth coach for camps hosted at COR-Athlete.

Others have since followed Roberts’ path. Angie Marino, a pro rider who performed a BMX stunt in the movie “Bad Moms,” also moved from North Carolina to Utah, Sirlin said. And Roberts said athletes like Nikita Ducarroz of Switzerland, who will also compete at X Games Salt Lake City, have used her home as a base camp.

Sirlin said he’d like to go beyond bringing in athletes for training and bring them in for World Cup-caliber competitions. The U.S. has only hosted one BMX freestyle World Cup stop, and that was in 2016. The course is expected to host the national championships next spring.

Considering her propensity for being on the cutting edge of the sport, Sirlin knows he may have been wise to get Roberts involved.

“She has accomplished more by a female in BMX freestyle than anyone in the history of the sport … and she’s only 23 years old,” he said. “I think she pushed the envelope of a very male-dominated sport that now is seeing 100% progression by countries all over the world and women all over the world, and she was the benchmark. That’s what I think Hannah has done for the sport.”

She says she’s nowhere near done, either. Next up is X Games Salt Lake City. Then, according to her long-term plan, every Summer Olympics through 2036. She expects to be based out of Utah for all of it, she said.

She just has to get that first title — to a house with a yard for her dogs — and let fate take it from there.

Related Topics:athlete bad big building business center coach competition design event formula 1 history late live new news Olympics photo pro sports team usa working

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Hartford Women’s Track and Field Shine at Yale University Season Opener

Published

33 minutes ago

December 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – On Saturday, the University of Hartford women’s indoor track & field team kicked off the season competing at the Yale Season Opener in New Haven, delivering standout performances setting new all-time school records.

Rapid Recap:

Senior Madison DiPasquale (Wallingford, Conn.) was busy today filling up the stat sheet and breaking all-time records at Hartford. She placed third in the weight throw event tossing a distance of 15.98 meters. Madison has set a new record for furthest weight throw distance in Hartford history, outbeating the previous holder by 0.66 meters. In the shot put event she finished in fifth place launching the shot put a good distance of 12.45 meters. DiPasquale beat her own record set last year at 11.82 to strengthen her position at second-best all-time at Hartford.

Junior Jordan Murphy (East Hampton, Conn.) as she earned third place overall in the high jump event clearing a height of 1.65m. With this jump she is now added to the top ten list in Hartford’s record books tying for seventh place.

Sophomore Ella Stephenson (Ledyard, Conn.) had a strong showing in the women’s 800m race earning second place overall with a final time of 2:26.74. Just behind Stephenson was freshman Leah Valentino (Beacon Falls, Conn.) finishing in third place just a few seconds after at 2:28.32.

Just behind DiPasquale in the shot put event was senior Tommie Barker (Canton, Conn.) finishing in eighth place with a distance of 11.73m. Barker is now tied for third best of all-time.

Junior Caroline Crocker (Bernardston, Mass.) took eighth place in the women’s 60m hurdles with a time of 9.24 seconds. This time puts her tied for fourth best of all-time in Hartford’s record books.

Post Game Press:

“My intentions coming into this meet were to just go out there, hit the technical cues, and just throw,” said senior Madison DiPasquale (Wallingford, Conn.). “On the throw I just did what I needed to do and it just clicked! I am going to use this as a confidence boost for the remainder of the season and hopefully continue to climb.”

“We had an incredible season opener,” said head coach Connor Green. “Now while school records and and top 10 marks are a goal and excellent when they happen, what we really loved with seeing all of our new athletes was to get a chance to showcase all of the hard work they’ve been putting in. As well as all of our returners really stepping up and putting themselves in a great position for the rest of the season. Across the board it was a stellar day and we are thrilled with how our athletes performed. We can’t wait to see what’s next.”

Up Next:

The Hawks will compete next Saturday, December 13th at the SCSU Art Kadish Invitational.

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Men’s Track and Field Finishes Second in Season Opener

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1 hour ago

December 7, 2025

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CHICAGO — The University of Chicago men’s track and field team took to the track on Friday afternoon at the Cougar Alumni Invite hosted by Chicago State. The Maroons finished second in a strong field of teams to open up the 2025-26 campaign with a strong start.

Quint Stein and Simon Dixon led the Maroons as the lone two individuals with first-place finishes. Dixon took home the wins in both the Shot Put and the Weight Throw, and Stein added the lone running event victory in the 800m Run. UChicago took the top three finishes in the 800m Run as Abraham Went and Tristan Louvard took second and third with a pair of finishes within two seconds of Stein.

Nathaniel Stuit earned a personal best in the men’s 400m Run with a time of 49.04 en route to second-place finish.

Oluwaseyi Kadiri added a second-place finish in the Triple Jump, and Imran Serifovic added a third-place finish in the High Jump for the top two jumping performances on the day.

With the first meet of the season now complete, the Maroons will break for the holidays before returning to the Henry Crown Fieldhouse for the Phoenix Invite on January 10.

TOP-5 FINISHERS:

1) Quint Stein – 800m Run – 1:57.32
1) Simon Dixon – Weight Throw – 16.49m
1) Simon Dixon – Shot Put – 15.53m
2) Nathaniel Stuit – 400m Run – 49.04 (Collegiate Best)
2) Oluwaseyi Kadiri – Triple Jump – 13.75m
2) Abraham Went – 800m – 1:58.56
3) Tristan Louvard – 800m – 1:59.22
3) Paul Sackman – 200m Dash – 22.16
3) Imran Serifovic – High Jump – 1.95m
3) Ethan Hoffman – Shot Put – 14.36m
4) Karsten Kropp – High Jump – 1.95m
5) Daniel Hernandez – Triple Jump – 13.22m
5) Paul Sackman – 60m Dash – 6.95

COLLEGIATE BESTS:

* Jackson Giampa – 200m Dash – 22.43
* Nathaniel Stuit – 400m Run – 49.04

TEAM SCORES:

1) Chicago State – 127.5
2) UChicago – 98
3) Madonna – 97.5
4) Bradley – 58
5) UIC – 54
6) Wisconsin – 49
7) Olivet Nazarene – 32
8) Bradley – 14
9) Loyola-Chicago – 13
10) Judson – 12
11) St. Xavier – 10
12) Benedictine (IL) – 6
13) Olive Harvey – 1

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Women’s Track and Field Kicks Off 2026 Season With Impressive Performances at Springfield Season Opener Meet

Published

2 hours ago

December 7, 2025

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Springfield, Mass. – December 6, 2025 – The Springfield College women’s track and field team had a number of strong performances as it hosted the Springfield College Season Opener for the first meet of the season on Saturday afternoon.

Katherine DeFosse (Worcester, Mass.) picked up right where she left off last indoor season as she took first in the 60-meter hurdles at 8.74 which is the third fastest time in NCAA Division III to date this season. DeFosse also picked up a second-place finish in both the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.84, which ranks eighth nationally and the 200-meter dash at 26.62 while Ella Couchon (Windsor Locks, Conn.) took the win in the 200-meter dash at 26.55, which ranks 16th nationally.

Kristina Kyle (Watertown, Conn.) won the one mile run, crossing the finish line at 5:19.76, ranking her fourth in the country early on, and Kami Wlodyka (Three Rivers, Mass.) finished third with a time of 5:29.72.

Natalia Marchand (Hubbardston, Mass.) took first place in the 400-meter dash in 58.51, ranking her fourth in Division III thus far, while first-year Sydney Meeks (Wynantskill, N.Y.) took second place with times of 58.51 and 1:02.80, respectively. Peyton Knott (Leicester, Mass.) won the 600-meter run with a time of 1:43.40.

Springfield’s relay teams swept the top three spots in the 4×400-meter relay with the relay team of Knott, Meeks, Marchand, and Madison Mulas (Wilmington, Mass.) finishing at 4:14.77.

In the field events, Hannah Debian (West Springfield, Mass.) won both the weight throw and shot put with marks of 15.48-meters (50 feet, 9.00 inches) and 11.87-meters (38 feet, 11.25 inches), respectively. Debian’s weight throw toss ranks fourth in the country as of today.

Grace Flattery (Swansea, Mass.) and Autumn Bacik (Watertown, Conn.) tied for second place in the high jump with a 1.58-meter (5 feet, 2.25 inches) jump. The duo is tied for ninth in Division III with this mark so far this season. Flattery also finished second in the triple jump with a mark of 10.42-meters (34 feet, 2.25 inches) in her debut for the Pride.

Springfield will await the new year and travel to Tufts on Saturday, January 17 for the Branwen Smith-King Invitational.

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FLEMMER POSTS PROGRAM RECORD AT HOLIDAY OPEN

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2 hours ago

December 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BROOKINGS, S.D. — South Dakota State opens its season with a 300-meter program record performance and over 20 podium finishes at the SDSU Holiday Open Friday evening.

HEAD COACH ROD DEHAVEN

“It was a great opening meet for the Jackrabbits. We ahd a lot of very positive things like the 300-meter school record from Lucas Flemmer. Great finish. The men’s 4×400-meter relay. We saw a lot of great stuff across the board. There is some things we can build upon, but the coaching staff I think was pleased with our overall effort today.”

TRACK EVENTS

The highlight of the meet occurred during the 300-meter race as sophomore Lucas Flemmer bested fellow teammate James Pierce’s program record of 33.65 by nearly a tenth of a second at 33.54 to win the race. Carter Toews, Griffin Fischer, Gunnar Gunderson and Cael Woods competed alongside Flemmer. Toews finished runner-up with a time of 34.42. Fischer claimed bronzed in his collegiate debut, crossing the line at 34.45. Gunnar Gunderson placed in the top-five with a time of 34.89, and Woods took seventh at 35.38.

Chloe Raw was a sight to see on the women’s side. Raw won the 60-meter dash in her collegiate debut, posting a time of 7.47. Later in the meet, Raw claimed bronze in the 200-meter with a time of 24.16. On the men’s side, Landen Matkins clutched runner-up in the 200-meter with a time of 22.22.

Freshman Story Rasby also won her first collegiate race during the night’s competition. Rasby won the 300-meter dash with a time of 39.52. Several Jackrabbits raced alongside Rasby, such as Erika Kuntz, who took bronze at 40.19. Jenna Johnson posted a top-five placement with a time of 40.36. Kyra Weiss clocked a time of 41.07 for sixth, while Vivian Dalton placed seventh with a time of 41.33. Alynna Henderson rounded out the Jackrabbit lineup in with a time of 43.84 to finish eighth overall.

Kuntz and Johnson also competed together in the 4×400-meter relay race. The two seniors, alongside Ellie Harris and Maggie Madsen, posted a time of 3:50.15 to win the event. Another SDSU relay team, comprised of Rasby, Reese Luze, Dalton and Weiss, challenged the winning senior squad during the race as the two teams vied for primary position. Ultimately, Weiss crossed the line a second after Kuntz to claim silver for her squad. Flemmer led the team for the men’s 4×400-meter relay. Freshmen Tate Songstad and Griffin Fischer made up the middle legs of the race with Gunnar Gunderson as the anchor. The squad clocked a time of 3:16.01 to win the event.

In distance events, Hannah Spoden won the 800-meter with a time of 2:13.30, while Lindsey Rotz crossed the line hot on Spoden’s tail in second at 2:13.50. Anna Sheriff and Marissa Garcia raced as well, finishing 11th and 12th, respectively. Sheriff posted a time of 2:21.58, while Garcia crossed at 2:23.42. On the men’s side, Joe Dustin finished fourth with a time of 1:53.79.

Sean Murphy took gold in the mile with a time of 4:16.34. Ty Brouwer raced as well, finishing fourth at 4:19.30. In the 3000-meter race, Tyler O’Neill finished runner-up at 8:45.48 behind Jackrabbit alum, Daniel Burkhalter, who clocked a time of 8:43.51. On the women’s side, Nicole Swanson took third at 10:08.31.

FIELD EVENTS

Ethan Fischer opened his senior season with a personal record in weight throw. Fischer hit a mark of 63-06.75 (19.37m) to win the event, while fellow Jackrabbit Ryan Hackbart took third with a throw of 58-01.25 (17.71m).

Ty Nelson opened his collegiate career with a first-place finish in triple jump. Nelson landed a mark of 47-08.50 (14.54m) to become the seventh-best performer in program history. Fellow freshman Kincade Lehman competed as well, placing in the top-five with a mark of 45-05.00 (13.84m). While Lehman didn’t make podium in triple jump, the freshman posted an impressive performance in long jump as he won the event with a leap of 23-06.00 (7.16m). Long jump was a packed event for SDSU as six other Jackrabbits competed alongside Lehman. Rylan McDonnell took fourth with a mark of 21-10.75 (6.67m). Brett Fraker finished in the top-five after landing 21-10.00 (6.65m). Wyatt Melcher took seventh with a jump of 21-05.25 (6.53m). Ryan Benson claimed ninth with a leap of 21-03.50 (6.49m). Hudson Schroeder finished 11th at 21-02.50 (6.46m), and Ty Nelson rounded out the Jackrabbit lineup with a 12th-place finish and a leap of 20-10.50 (6.36m).

Taylor Jochum had a solid showing in her season debut. Jochum cleared 5-04.25 (1.63m) in the high jump competition to take second. Hadley Carlson and Logan Bly competed as well, placing fourth and eighth, respectively. Carlson cleared 5-04.25 (1.63m) to receive her placement, while Bly jumped 5-00.25 (1.53m).

UP NEXT

The Jackrabbits disperse for winter break before heading to Vermillion for the USD Alumni Meet on Jan. 17.

-GoJacks.com-

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Sara Schermerhorn Tops Former Teammate to Win 400 Meters at GVSU Track and Field Holiday Open

Published

2 hours ago

December 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Hope College sprinter Sara Schermerhorn raced past a former teammate to win the 400-meter run at the indoor season–opening Grand Valley State University Holiday Open on Friday in Allendale.

The senior from Traverse City, Michigan (Traverse City West), posted a first-place time of 55.45 seconds to race past a field of 58 on GVSU’s 300-meter track. The run also was the fastest in NCAA Division III so far this season.

Schermerhorn crossed the finish line ahead of runner-up Catherine Leahy ’25. Leahy, who now competes for NCAA Division I Oakland University as a graduate student, finished in 57.43.

The meet, which featured NCAA Division I, II, III and NAIA competitors, was the first for head coach Jordan Bartolazzi coaching Schermerhorn, a four-time All-American over the past two indoor seasons.

“Sara is an exceptional worker, and she has all the intangibles,” Bartolazzi said. “She knows how to race and how to run with exceptional form.

“It was neat to see Catherine running. I would have loved to get her last year of eligibility this year, but I’m happy for her. She’s at a great school and will continue to do great things.”

The Flying Dutch delivered several more strong performances.

In the 1-mile run invite division, senior Molly Durow picked up where she left off after an All-American cross country season this fall.

Durow (Glenview, Illinois / Glenbrook South) clocked Division III’s top time with a runner-up effort of 4:58.97. Only Gabby Phelan of NCAA Division I Toledo University was faster, at 4:57.3.

Freshman Miranda Sawvel (Laramie, Colorado / Centennial) placed eighth in the event in 5:14.47.

The Flying Dutch posted Division III’s fifth-fastest 4×400 relay, with freshman Jaidyn Klimp (Galesburg, Michigan / Galesburg Augusta), senior Frances Cozzens (Lyman, New Hampshire / St. Johnsbury Academy), freshman Savana Monville (Auburn, Michigan / Bay City Western) and freshman Eliana Kotsonis (Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin / Hamilton) going 4:03.50. The relay finished seventh in the race.

Junior Mary England (Kalamazoo, Michigan / Kalamazoo Central) outraced the field in Heat 2 of the 3,000-meter run, recording a time of 10:20.07 that was sixth-fastest in Division III. England finished ahead of runner-up Jadie Chavez of the Division I University of Illinois at Chicago, who ran 10:32.51.

Freshman Taylor Mitchell (Otsego, Michigan / Otsego) took fourth in the heat at 10:38.00.

In Heat 2 of the 5,000-meter run, freshman Dylan Ballin (Brookville, Ohio / Brookville) led the Flying Dutch with a third-place time of 18:08.83. Ballin ranked 17th in the nation after Friday.

“I was really pleased,” Bartolazzi said. “We had great energy, as the men did. It was a good day for Hope track and field.”

Hope next competes Saturday, Jan. 24, at the Aurora University (Illinois) Grand Prix near Chicago.

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Women’s Indoor Track and Field Starts Action at BU Sharon Colyear-Danvile Season Opener

Published

3 hours ago

December 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BOSTON, MA (December 6, 2025) — The Tufts University women’s track and field team sent a small contingent of distance runners to the opening indoor track and field meet of the 2025-26 season, competing at the 2025 Boston University Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener at the BU Track and Tennis Center.

Sophomore Phoebe Bryar competed in the women’s 1500 meter run Saturday, and finished 31st overall in a very deep meet with many Division I and II schools competing. Bryar ran a 4:56.36 in the event, while the race continued for a mile time as she chalked up a 5:15.48 for a New England Regional qualifying time and 30th place.

Sonia Olson also ran in the same event, taking 37th in the in the 1500m en route with a 4:59.02. She would close with a time of 5:19.57 in the mile run.

First-year Zui Chinchalkar ran her first collegiate track race in the 3000 meter run, crossing the line in 10:02.06 for a Division III New England Regional qualifying time.

Senior Elizabeth Donahue ran a 16:54.83 in the women’s 5000m run, and junior Katya Henisz finished with a 17:13.13. Both times were regional qualifying times, as well as personal-best times in the event.

Tufts will have a few days off before heading to the Dartmouth College December Invitational Friday, December 12 in Hanover, NH.

–JUMBOS–

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