Simon Hayes – From the Early Days of British BMX to the Oscars

It is always great to see riders from the early days of British BMX go on to achieve success in other fields, and Simon Hayes is a great example of that journey.

Simon was part of the UKBMX scene in the early 1980s, riding during a formative period for the sport. He rode for Kuwahara and Hutch and competed in major events including the Kellogg’s BMX TV Series in 1984 and 1985, which helped bring BMX into living rooms across the country. In 1985 he became European Champion in Barcelona, Spain, a major achievement at the time.

After BMX, Simon followed his father into the television and film industry, training and working as a sound engineer before establishing himself as one of the leading production sound mixers in the business.

Over the years he has worked on a wide range of major films, just to name a few including Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Layer Cake, Stardust, Kick Ass, X Men First Class, Prometheus, Mamma Mia!, Shaun of the Dead and Les Misérables.

For his work on Les Misérables in 2012, Simon won the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Sound as part of the production team. He has since received further nominations for No Time to Die in 2021 and Wicked in 2024, continuing to work at the highest level of the film industry.

Simon Hayes remains a great example of how riders from our sport have gone on to achieve remarkable things beyond racing.