Australian freestyle motocross star Jayden “Jayo” Archer has died. He was 27.
“The Nitro Circus family is mourning the loss of Jayo Archer,” the sports entertainment company created by Travis Pastrana wrote on Instagram on Wednesday. Archer was a member of Nitro Circus and was the first rider to land a triple backflip in competition in 2022. Archer tragically died in his hometown of Melbourne, Australia, while practicing the trick, according to ESPN.
“Jayo was the epitome of passion, hard work & determination,” Nitro Circus said. “He pushed what was possible on a dirt bike to heights never seen before. A positive influence to those around him. And above all else a great human being and friend to us all. Sending our thoughts and love to Jayo’s family and friends. We love you mate. Ride in peace.”
Pastrana also shared a tribute on Instagram, writing, “Thank you for the memories friend 💔 Thank you for being such a great human and positive role model for all of us.”
Archer became the first rider to land a triple backflip in competition at the Nitro World Games in Brisbane, Australia, in October 2022. After finishing second in FMX best trick with the skill, Archer proposed to his girlfriend, Beth King.
“I cannot describe this feeling,” Archer said at the time. “This is so much more than a competition and trick to me. I’ve dedicated my entire life for the last three years to this moment right now. There were a lot of obstacles and broken bones and knockouts, and I would do it 100 times over to relive that again.”
Archer also won a bronze medal at the X Games California 2023 for MTX best trick.
In a statement to ESPN, Pastrana described Archer as “a great human first, a hard worker second and a bad (expletive) third.” He added, “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.”
