Yuma BMX Rider ready for the world stage

Hope Navarro will represent Team USA at the UCI BMX World Championships in Denmark.

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - Hope Navarro is about to take the biggest ride of her young career.

The 14-year-old local BMX rider has qualified to represent Team USA at the upcoming UCI BMX World Championships in Denmark, earning her spot after a standout performance at a qualifier in Houston.

Navarro was one of just 14 girls in her age group across the country to secure a place on the national team.

"I'm so excited because the tracks are so much different over there," Navarro said. "They're bigger and more technical."

"She aggressive with her training," her mother Denisse Garcia said. "She's not afraid to be out there rubbing elbows with the boys. She's fearless."

Navarro first got on a BMX bike at just nine-years-old and hasn't looked back since. Her passion and dedication have only grown stronger over the years.

"I just came out to the track and I fell in love with it at first sight," Navarro said.

She now trains five to six days a week, splitting her time between intense rides on the track and strength training in the gym. That commitment has helped her rise through the ranks of elite youth BMX competitors.

While Navarro has her sights set on becoming the world’s No. 1 rider in her division, she says the opportunity means even more. She hopes to be a role model for other young girls in Yuma, showing them that with hard work and determination, anything is possible.

"Girls should definitely try BMX," she says. "It's really fun and there's not that many girls here that race BMX. I feel like they should because it's something out of the ordinary."

The world championships kick off in July in Copenhagen, Denmark. If you would be interested in sponsoring Navarro's trip reach out to Denisse.h.garcia@gmail.com.