They'll be celebrating in the streets of Colombia thanks to a sportthat only made its Olympic debut four years ago, and has only been trulyembraced by a select few countries.
The South American nation is one of them.
Mariana Pajon gave Colombia its first gold medal of the London Olympics onFriday when she rolled to an impressive victory in the women's BMX final, andCarlos Mario Oquendo Zabala made it a day to remember when he added a bronzemedal in the men's race.
"I can't believe it," Pajon said. "It's like a dream come true.My whole life I'm trying to win this. I want to win it again. I want to go outthe gate and win it again. It's unbelievable."
The flag-bear for Colombia at the opening ceremony, Pajon dominated hersemifinal runs Friday to reach the eight-woman final. Pajon took the lead outof the starting gate, perched high above the challenging course, and never letanybody close during a flawless run.
With David Beckham watching from the stands, Pajon crossed the line in 37.706seconds, blowing kisses to the capacity crowd as members of the Colombian teamstarted to celebrate.
Sarah Walker of New Zealand claimed the silver medal and Laura Smulders of theNetherlands took bronze, while home favorite Shanaze Reade of Britain — whocrashed out of the final in Beijing four years ago — was never in contentionand ended sixth.
World champion Magalie Pottier of France spent the race in the pack andfinished seventh, just ahead of Brooke Crain of the United States. The19-year-old was a late substitute for Arielle Martin, who crashed in practiceJuly 30, and rode with the initials of her injured teammate on her glove.
Pajon credited her victory on the dangerous and technical Olympic course toquick starts, which allowed her to get through the first corner ahead of thetraffic. She posted three consecutive wins in the semifinals to advance to themedal race.
"After the time trials, I felt I was going really fast," she said."I felt really strong, I had really good gates and that's it. I really hadfun on it. I can't believe it. It's like a dream. I have to wake up tomorrowand realize what I have just won."
Oquendo seemed just as happy with his bronze medal.
Maris Strombergs of Latvia took the lead early in the men's final and never relinquishedit, winning his second straight title. World champion Sam Willoughby ofAustralia claimed the silver, but Oquendo celebrated just as hard as either ofthem after crossing the finish in third.
"I still have to realize it's true," he said. "I just want toenjoy this moment that I still I don't believe is reality. Of course, onealways wants to win an Olympic medal."
Just like Pajon, Strombergs went straight to the lead and forced the otherriders to jockey for position behind him. Willoughby was second, but Oquendowas trapped behind Britain's Liam Phillips.
Oquendo's opening came when the riders were jumping over a gravel moat.Phillips wiped out and Oquendo managed to avoid him, allowing the Colombian tomove up to third place.
"This is a sport where you fall down and get up again," said Oquendo,who survived two crashes in Thursday's quarterfinals to advance to Friday."I never lost faith that I could do it."
Oquendo dedicated his bronze medal to his family and "everybody in Colombia."
"This is something that everybody has contributed to," he said,making a point to congratulate Pajon on her win. "This is a shining momentin my sports career."
Strombergs won only the third Olympic gold medal for Latvia, a tiny Balticnation that from 1952-88 competed as part of the Soviet Union. The only otherwas won by Igor Vihrovs in the floor exercise at the 2000 Sydney Olympics,eight years after Latvia began competing independently again.
"It's just amazing," Strombergs said. "I think everyone at home,they watched the race, and deep inside they were hoping I could repeat, and Ithink my country believed in me."
Strombergs wasn't considered among the favorites coming into the Olympics,despite a resume that includes two world championships. He'd struggled withinjuries the past couple years, a particulary hard crash in November 2010keeping him out for about sixth months.
On Friday, he proved that he's just as good as ever.
"Latvia is a small country — it's not big," Strombergs said. "WhenI go home, they recognize me, but you know, I don't really focus on it. My mainfocus is BMX, and just doing my thing."