- ABC News
- February 21, 2024
Freestyle motocross athlete Jayden "Jayo" Archer, an X Games medalist and the first rider to perform a triple backflip in competition, died while practicing the trick Wednesday morning in his hometown of Melbourne, Australia. He was 27. A beloved member of the Australian motocross community and the Nitro Circus, the action sports media brand started by multisport star Travis Pastrana, Archer was known for pushing the progression of freestyle motocross at a time when there was little external reward for doing so. "This really hit home," Pastrana told ESPN. "Jayo grew up in a time when action sports was at its biggest, and he always wanted to do the big stuff like the double and the triple, even though there weren't a lot of places to showcase those bigger tricks. He'd get up every morning at 4 a.m. and go to the gym before work so he could ride his dirt bike. When he came to Maryland to train, he stayed at my house and was an incredible role model to my kids. He was a great human...