A crowd full of Minnesotans cheered on hometown hero Colton Walker as he competed on Sunday in his second final of the 2017 X Games. Walker came into the BMX Dirt final confident after a 4th place finish in BMX Park the day before. While Walker admitted that he does not consider himself a dirt rider, he was feeling confident on the dirt jumps and was enjoying the set-up. This was evident when the 20-year old X Games rookie stomped his competition and came home with his first X Games Gold.

With family and friends in the nearby stands, the ever confident rider competed against previous X Games Gold medal holders like Kevin Peraza and Kyle Baldock. While others struggled to maintain their signature tricks, Walker didn’t let the pressure of the competition get to him. Solidifying his spot a top the podium, Walker managed to dial in a 360 double downside whip to late barspin over the final jump into a flair whip to barspin on the quarter.

With precision and control Walker earned himself a 93.00 flat and landed in the top spot with his second run. The pressure stayed on as Walker waited for his fellow competitors to take their runs. As he stood waiting for the final scores, Walker said, “I just want a medal. They’re really cool.” The Minnesota native previously rode in U.S. Bank Stadium for a Minnesota Vikings halftime show but said now he was excited to be doing this “on his stage.”

Walker was able to make Minnesota proud and take home his very own Gold Viking ship. When asked how he felt about his win, Walker was short but sweet, “Fantastic.”

Follow Monster Army: Instagram // Facebook // Twitter

Follow Colton: Monster Army // Instagram