5 MINUTES WITH LIVIA LANCELOT

Having won the inaugural Women’s World Motocross Championship in 2008, French rider Livia Lancelot went on to compete in the incredibly tough Le Touquet sand race as well as the X Games in America. Back in MX however, she has set up her own team, Team One One Four, from which she races her Kawasaki KX250F – narrowly missing out on the World title in 2015…
“After securing the Women’s World MX Championship, I stepped away from MX and wanted to push myself in other disciplines. I competed at the X Games for a few years where I was lucky enough to pick up some medals and also set some records in the Le Touquet race – which is one of the toughest things I’ve ever done. There is nothing like a World title though, which is why I came back into the sport.

Running my own team is tough, I feel like I always have three or four jobs to do at the same time but despite the pressure and time, I love racing for my own team. I’m the boss and can choose what I want, the bikes, the parts, the crew – everything!

Women’s MX is growing constantly too, which is fantastic. The level of the riders out there is so strong now, in Germany we were only eight seconds slower than the best lap in MX2 - something that has never happened before. I hope this continues as it certainly shows that MX is not just a sport for men.

This year was fantastic and heart breaking at the same time. We had lots of success and I went into the final race with a four point lead, just laps from taking the title. Unfortunately for me the race, and title, were over before the lights went out. My bike stopped for some reason on the sighting lap and the rules mean I can’t take the second bike out for the race – even if I got back in time. So I had to sit there and watch the title slip through my fingers.

I’m still incredibly proud of my team, it was no one’s fault and everyone gave it their all – from my parents, trainer and mechanics to my sponsors and fans. We had a great year and I’ll be back in 2016 ready to try again!”