Arielle Martin
Encyclopedia
Arielle Martin (age 22 in 2008) of Pleasant Grove
, Utah
, is a US BMX cyclist.
She crashed in the quarter-finals at the World Championships held in Taiyuan
, China
, on June 2, 2008, with the result that Jill Kintner
, her friend and roommate at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California
, finished in sixth place, which was enough to guarantee Jill the only automatic women's spot on the US BMX Olympic Team. USA Cycling has a 17-race points series, and Jill had 129 points to Martin's 128. Kintner made up and went beyond a 13-point deficit with her sixth place and Martin's crash, became the one US Women's representative in the BMX racing event, and received a bronze medal, a medal she says was half won by Martin, who, after crashing, returned to the training center to help Kintner train. The two say that living together in the training center just made them able to push each other, as they remained neck and neck until Martin's accident. They had worked so hard together that Kintner characterized her win as bittersweet, at first more bitter than sweet.
Martin finished a degree in exercise science in 2007 at Brigham Young University
. She was married in December 2007 to Michael Verhaaren and has taken his name except for when she is involved in bike competitions. They left their Utah home on separate missions, she to train for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing
, and he to spend a year deployed in Afghanistan
with the US Army.
Martin's father was a BMX racer. As a tiny girl, she watched him, then started riding a BMX bike at the age of two. At 15 she turned pro and in October, 2007, became the third woman in the world to do a backflip on a BMX bike. Martin has said that missing the Beijing Olympics made her more determined than ever to remain at the top in BMX and to compete at the 2012 Olympic Games in London
.
Pleasant Grove
Pleasant Grove or Pleasant Groves is the name of several communities or other places in the United States:*Pleasant Grove, Alabama, a municipality*Pleasant Groves, Alabama, a municipality...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, is a US BMX cyclist.
She crashed in the quarter-finals at the World Championships held in Taiyuan
Taiyuan
Taiyuan is the capital and largest city of Shanxi province in North China. At the 2010 census, it had a total population of 4,201,591 inhabitants on 6959 km² whom 3,212,500 are urban on 1,460 km². The name of the city literally means "Great Plains", referring to the location where the Fen River...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, on June 2, 2008, with the result that Jill Kintner
Jill Kintner
Jill Kintner is a professional American "Mid School" Bicycle Motocross and professional mountain cross racer whose prime competitive years were 1995-2002 in BMX; 2004–present in mountain cross...
, her friend and roommate at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, finished in sixth place, which was enough to guarantee Jill the only automatic women's spot on the US BMX Olympic Team. USA Cycling has a 17-race points series, and Jill had 129 points to Martin's 128. Kintner made up and went beyond a 13-point deficit with her sixth place and Martin's crash, became the one US Women's representative in the BMX racing event, and received a bronze medal, a medal she says was half won by Martin, who, after crashing, returned to the training center to help Kintner train. The two say that living together in the training center just made them able to push each other, as they remained neck and neck until Martin's accident. They had worked so hard together that Kintner characterized her win as bittersweet, at first more bitter than sweet.
Martin finished a degree in exercise science in 2007 at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
. She was married in December 2007 to Michael Verhaaren and has taken his name except for when she is involved in bike competitions. They left their Utah home on separate missions, she to train for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, and he to spend a year deployed in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
with the US Army.
Martin's father was a BMX racer. As a tiny girl, she watched him, then started riding a BMX bike at the age of two. At 15 she turned pro and in October, 2007, became the third woman in the world to do a backflip on a BMX bike. Martin has said that missing the Beijing Olympics made her more determined than ever to remain at the top in BMX and to compete at the 2012 Olympic Games in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
See also
- List of cyclists
- List of Brigham Young University Alumni
- Jill KintnerJill KintnerJill Kintner is a professional American "Mid School" Bicycle Motocross and professional mountain cross racer whose prime competitive years were 1995-2002 in BMX; 2004–present in mountain cross...
- BMX racingBMX racingBMX racing is a type of off-road bicycle racing. The format of BMX was derived from motocross racing. BMX bicycle races are sprint races on purpose-built off-road single-lap race tracks. The track usually small a starting gate for up to eight racers, a groomed, serpentine, dirt race course made of...