Caroline Buchanan knows BMX racing - and the adversity it can bring.
She also knows Saya Sakakibara.
So when the 33-year-old says the Helensburgh rider, now an Olympic gold medallist, has eclipsed the sport, you listen.
"We've had so many Australians who have had so much talent over the years," Buchanan said from Paris.
"Saya is the first one who has been able to deliver this gold medal and her performance just transcends the sport of BMX racing."
Buchanan, now a member of the Nine commentary team at the 2024 games, is Australia's female BMX trailblazer. She knows a thing or two about injury and disappointment.
Having won multiple world championships in BMX and mountain biking, she also is a dual Olympian, having represented in 2012 at London and 2016 in Rio Olympics.
Neither games went to plan and her aim of competing at Tokyo in 2020 was derailed after she managed to resume elite racing after an horrific off-road buggy crash late 2017.
"Saya has seen so much," Buchanan said. "And BMX can be a brutal sport."
Saya's brother Kai now lives with a traumatic brain injury after a BMX crash, another elite rider Sam Willoughby was left a tetraplegic after a training run crash, and Saya even considered quitting after a heavy crash at Tokyo left her with prolonged side-effects.
"She made that choice to not quit and to completely lean in, accept the risks and be brave.
"It's just such a testament to her character to choose to not back away from fear but to lean into it. She backed herself tonight," Buchanan said.
"To not let the nerves of an Olympics, the pressure, the fear of the past and of what could go wrong affect her ... " she trails off, almost in awe of Sakakibara's strength.
"She was just able to silence all that fear, stick to the process and deliver."
Buchanan quietly admits Saya's success has closed some Olympic trauma of her own, having not performed to her own expectations in London 2012.
"I shifted into a defensive mindset in the final ... whereas Saya didn't make that mental shift.
"All of the Australian BMX racing Olympic teams over the years have gone a long way to creating the strength of the team - and Saya embodies it."
And Buchanan's had a huge role in building those foundations. So much so our conversation is interrupted by a message which she shared.
"It says 'John Wiley here, former chair of the Australian Sports Commission. You can take a lot of pride in having led the young athletes in this sport who were inspired by you'.
"Oh wow," Buchanan said. "I'm gonna cry again.
"It's been emotional all night."
- Buchanan will continue behind the mike, commenting at the skateboard park event next week. Coverage will continue on 9 and be streamed on 9Now.
