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| Born | 2 February 1932 London, England |
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| Nationality | British (English) |
| Career history | |
| 1953-1957, 1960-1962 | Ipswich Witches |
| 1961-1964 | Exeter Falcons |
| 1964 | Hackney Hawks |
| Individual honours | |
| 1962 | Provincial League Riders' Champion |
| Team honours | |
| 1962 | Provincial League KO Cup Winner |
Len Silver (born 2 February 1932, east London, England) is a former speedway rider and is former promoter of the Rye House Rockets.
Silver stopped racing in 1957 but returned to the Ipswich Witches in 1960 after a layoff due to injury. In 1961 he was transferred to Exeter where he skippered the Exeter Falcons and won the Provincial League Riders' Championship in 1962. Silver made 10 successful defences of the Silver Sash Match Race Championship. In 1964 he transferred to the Hackney Hawks as a rider/promoter but his riding career was cut short by serious injuries after a first bend crash at Hackney shortly after joining.
Silver continued as Hackney's Promoter and Manager until the demise of the Hawks in 1983, and also promoted at Hackney's sister track Rye House. As part of Allied Presentations, he also promoted at the Rayleigh Rockets, Weymouth Wildcats, Crewe Kings, Sunderland Stars and the Reading Racers. [1] He also spent a season as promoter of the Eastbourne Eagles during the 1980s.
He became owner of Rye House Stadium in 2000 and returned to Rye House Speedway as team owner, promoting the Rye House Rockets in the Premier League and the Rye House Cobras in the Conference League. [2] He now co promotes the Kent Kings at Sittingbourne.
He is considered to be one of speedway's most colourful and controversial characters. He was once banned by the Speedway Control Board from "taking any part in a speedway meeting" during the 1976 season after an altercation with a referee.
He has also served as the Team Manager for the England and Great Britain National teams and was the track curator at Wembley stadium for the 1981 World Final. [3]
Has served several terms on the British Speedway Promoters' Association management committee.
In 2021, he announced his retirement from speedway management. [4]
The Canterbury Crusaders were a motorcycle speedway team who operated from the Kingsmead Stadium, Kingsmead Road, Canterbury from 1968 to 1987. For all of their 20-year existence, the Crusaders operated at the second level of British league speedway, in British League Division Two and the National League.
Hackney Hawks speedway opened in 1963 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London and operated until 1983. The team replaced the Hackney Wick Wolves who had raced at the stadium from 1935 to 1939. The Hawks were then themselves replaced by the Hackney Kestrels.
The Rye House Rockets were a speedway team based at Rye House Stadium, Hoddesdon, England. They competed in various British speedway leagues from 1954 to 2018.
Rye House Stadium is a former greyhound racing and speedway venue in Rye Road, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire. It is situated adjacent to the River Lea Navigation.
The Rayleigh Rockets were a Speedway team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1973 from the Rayleigh Weir Stadium in Rayleigh, Essex.
Malcolm Simmons was a British speedway rider.
Vic Harding was a motorcycle speedway rider.
Colin George Pratt was a British motorcycle speedway rider and later promoter of the Coventry Bees who compete in the British Elite League.
Edward (Eddie) David Kennett is a motorcycle speedway rider. He was the British Under-21 Champion in 2005 and has appeared in two Speedway Grand Prix as a wild card.
Barry John Thomas is a former motorcycle speedway rider. 'Thommo' is considered to be the most popular Hackney rider ever, staying with the club based at the Hackney Wick Stadium for a record-breaking 20 consecutive seasons.
The London Lions were a motorcycle speedway team that operated for one season during the 1996 Premier League speedway season from the Hackney Wick Stadium, the former home of the Hackney Hawks and the Hackney Kestrels.
Finn Thomsen is a former motorcycle speedway rider
Bo Petersen is a former motorcycle speedway rider who first rode in the UK with the Hackney Hawks. Signed by Len Silver in 1978 he stayed with the Hawks until they closed at the end of the season 1983.
Jens Rasmussen is a former speedway rider who rode in the United Kingdom.
Dag Lövaas is a former international motorcycle speedway rider, who reached the finals of the Speedway World Championship in 1974. His brother Ulf was also a speedway rider.
Hackney Wick Wolves speedway opened in 1935 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London, and operated until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. Many years later the Hackney Hawks and Hackney Kestrels rode at Hackney Wick Stadium.
Roy George Arthur 'Dicky' Case was an Australian international speedway rider who finished sixth in the 1936 Speedway World Championship, the first ever final.
Karl Fiala is a former motorcycle speedway rider.
Hugh Saunders was an English speedway rider in the National League.
Ted Hubbard nicknamed "Hurricane Hubbard" was a former motorcycle speedway rider in National League (speedway) and British League
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