Brandon Loupos reveals journey from shocking back injury to competing in national titles

From setting the best run in the history of the sport, to staring at a hospital ceiling in a foreign country for a month. Check out Gold Coast BMX rider Brandon Loupos’ incredible journey as he prepares to compete in the national BMX freestyle championships.

Staring at the ceiling inside a Japanese hospital, Brandon Loupos’ career had reached another brutal low after yet another serious injury to cap off a horrid run of luck.

The Gold Coast BMX rider was once a world champion and X-Games gold medallist who laid claim to ‘the best run in the history of the sport’.

However, after scaling such incredible heights, Loupos had fallen back down to Earth.

The crash left him bedridden and unable to complete some of the simplest of tasks thanks to a broken back.

Despite his devastating setback, Loupos refused to throw in the towel and give up on the sport which helped him find his purpose in life.

Less than five months later, he is set to compete in the BMX Freestyle National Championships in his own backyard.

Loupos revealed the light at the end of what was seemingly an endless tunnel which helped him return to the park to do what he loves most.

“Just loving what I do, that’s what got me to the other side,” he said.

“Obviously I want to keep coming back and keep winning and have good results and get back to where I was. 

“But I am so lost without riding my bike, as long as I am riding my bike and just bettering myself on and off it then I have that purpose and my purpose is just riding and doing the best I can. 

“I have lost sight of that a little bit getting hurt all the time because riding got taken away from me so many times. 

“It has made me take a step back and realise that it’s not my job, it’s what I want to do. 

“So it has been a good thing in that perspective in that I choose to do this, not this is the only thing I have in my life.

“That’s what drives me to keep coming (back) from injury after injury and keep riding my back and keep having fun.”

His drive and perseverance has been tested countless times in recent years, with two ACL injuries, knee surgery on his meniscus and a broken elbow – all before his horrid back injury in September last year.

Brandon Loupos. Picture: Gorak Photos

“It is kind of like impostor syndrome a little bit, because you feel so good after you’re getting hurt and the you’re like ‘Oh yeah I’ll just get back and continue where I left off’ but it’s a lot harder than that,” he said.

“You have to slowly find your way back otherwise if you press your foot on the gas a little too much you’ll end up hurting something else or hurting it even more than it was before.

“The biggest learning curve was taking one step at a time and having that goal of getting back to where I was before but trying to not rush it. 

“That is ultimately the roadblock really, I was battling myself with that. 

“We’ve kind of found that balance of consistency in training and preparation with everything coming into it but really just trying to enjoy the journey rather than rush to the destination.”

With countless hours spent in the gym recovering from injuries, Loupos is desperate for a solid run in terms of fitness as he hopes to chase the adrenaline rushes that have eluded him in recent years.

“Getting hurt a lot, you really do miss that feeling of even learning a new trick, learning a new trick is kind of like hitting a new PB in the gym,” he said.

“I get that euphoric feeling when that happens. 

“When I do a new trick or do something for the first time after an injury or do something brand new, you feel accomplished. 

“I try and chase that every day so I can keep that feeling because once you have it, you never want to let it get away.” 

Brandon Loupos. Picture: Gorak Photos

From what started out as humble beginnings watching videos of his favourite riders doing tricks before he would go to school, Loupos revolutionised the sport of freestyle BMX with his groundbreaking ride in the World Cup in 2019 – which was considered one of the best runs in the history of the event.

“In this run, I did big tricks that people wouldn’t do more than one or two of, I did probably five or six,” he said.

“I did a 1080 in one jump, I did a double backflip on an obstacle called a step-up, where the landing is taller than the takeoff.

“That’s normally the staple now where people do another big trick on and I like to think I originated that because back then it was just a filler obstacle where people would do something small just to get across it.

“At the end of it I was just so filled up with adrenaline that I kinda forgot where I was. 

“You’re so locked in sometimes that you kind of forget what you’re doing, you’re just going.”

After being stuck in an overseas hospital for what would have felt like an eternity, Loupos is delighted to compete in his hometown this weekend.

2024 BMX Freestyle Oceania Champions Natalya Diehm and Brandon Loupos. Picture: AusCycling

“It is good to be competing at home finally, I competed in the state championships in Beenleigh so that was pretty cool to be in front of my closest friends,” he said.

“I have lived on the Gold Coast for five years now and I love it here, it’s home, it’s where all my closest friends are. 

“It is really cool to be able to do a national championship at home, it’s one of those things us athletes dream about to be able to do it in front of our hometown. 

“I am excited just to be able to sleep in my own bed and have my breakfast and be around my familiar surroundings and then go compete. 

“I think that is the best case scenario ever.”

Originally published as Brandon Loupos reveals journey from shocking back injury to competing in national titles