Speedway World Pairs Championship

World Pairs Championship

Sport	Motorcycle speedway
Founded	1968
Ceased	1993
Replaced by	Speedway of Nations
Continent	World
Most titles	Hans Nielsen (7 times) Denmark (8 times)

The Speedway World Pairs Championship was a motorcycle speedway event held annually in different countries. ^{[1] [2]} The first competition was held in 1968, and the final competition was held in 1993. ^{[3] [4] [5] [6]} In 1994, it was merged with the World Team Cup to create the Speedway World Cup, which held its final edition in 2017.

The concept of an international pairs championship was re-established in the form of the Speedway of Nations, held for the first time in 2018. ^[7]

Rules

The final was competed between seven national teams, and two riders represented each national team. Each pairing rode against each other once. The pair with the highest combined score were declared the Champions. From 1991, a third rider could act as a reserve. ^[8]

Winners

Year	Venue	Winners	Runner-up	3rd place
1968	Kempten Speedway Kempten	Sweden (24 pts) Ove Fundin Torbjörn Harrysson	Great Britain (21 pts) Geoff Mudge Ray Wilson	Norway (16 pts) Odd Fossengen Øyvind S. Berg
1969	Gubbängens IP Stockholm	New Zealand (28 pts) Ivan Mauger Bob Andrews	Sweden (27 pts) Ove Fundin Göte Nordin	England (21 pts) Nigel Boocock Martin Ashby
1970	Malmö Stadion Malmö	New Zealand (28 pts) Ivan Mauger Ronnie Moore	Sweden (25 pts) Ove Fundin Bengt Jansson	England (19 pts) Nigel Boocock Eric Boocock
1971	Rybnik Municipal Stadium Rybnik	Poland (30 pts) Andrzej Wyglenda Jerzy Szczakiel	New Zealand (25 pts) Ivan Mauger Barry Briggs	Sweden (22 pts) Anders Michanek Bernt Persson
1972	Ryavallen Borås	England (24+3 pts) Ray Wilson Terry Betts	New Zealand (24+2 pts) Ivan Mauger Ronnie Moore	Sweden B (22+3 pts) Bernt Persson Hasse Holmqvist
1973	Ryavallen Borås	Sweden (24 pts) Anders Michanek Tommy Jansson	Denmark (21+3 pts) Ole Olsen Kurt Bøgh	Poland (21+2 pts) Zenon Plech Zbigniew Marcinkowski
1974	Hyde Road Manchester	Sweden (28 pts) Anders Michanek Sören Sjösten	Australia (23 pts) John Boulger Phil Crump	New Zealand (21 pts) Barry Briggs Ivan Mauger
1975	Stadion Olimpijski Wrocław	Sweden (24 pts) Anders Michanek Tommy Jansson	Poland (23 pts) Edward Jancarz Piotr Bruzda	Denmark (20+3 pts) Ole Olsen Jan Henningsen
1976	Snälltorpet Eskilstuna	England (27 pts) John Louis Malcolm Simmons	Denmark (24 pts) Ole Olsen Finn Thomsen	Sweden (22 pts) Bengt Jansson Bernt Persson
1977	Hyde Road Manchester	England (28 pts) Peter Collins Malcolm Simmons	Sweden (18 pts) Anders Michanek Bernt Persson	West Germany (18 pts) Egon Müller Hans Wassermann
1978	Stadion Śląski Chorzów	England (24+3 pts) Malcolm Simmons Gordon Kennett	New Zealand (24+2 pts) Ivan Mauger Larry Ross	Denmark (21 pts) Ole Olsen Finn Thomsen
1979	Vojens Speedway Center Vojens	Denmark (25 pts) Ole Olsen Hans Nielsen	England (24 pts) Malcolm Simmons Michael Lee	Poland (20 pts) Edward Jancarz Zenon Plech
1980	Matija Gubec Stadium Krško	England (29 pts) Dave Jessup Peter Collins	Poland (22 pts) Edward Jancarz Zenon Plech	Denmark (21 pts) Ole Olsen Hans Nielsen
1981	Stadion Śląski Chorzów	United States (23 pts) Bruce Penhall Bobby Schwartz	New Zealand (22 pts) Ivan Mauger Larry Ross	Poland (21 pts) Zenon Plech Edward Jancarz
1982	Liverpool City Raceway Sydney	United States (30 pts) Bobby Schwartz Dennis Sigalos	England (22 pts) Kenny Carter Peter Collins	Denmark (21 pts) Hans Nielsen Ole Olsen
1983	Ullevi Gothenburg	England (25 pts) Kenny Carter Peter Collins	Australia (24 pts) Billy Sanders Gary Guglielmi	Denmark (19 pts) Hans Nielsen Erik Gundersen
1984	Santa Marina Stadium Lonigo	England (27 pts) Chris Morton Peter Collins	Denmark (25+3 pts) Hans Nielsen Erik Gundersen	New Zealand (25+2 pts) Ivan Mauger Mitch Shirra
1985	Rybnik Municipal Stadium Rybnik	Denmark (29 pts) Erik Gundersen Tommy Knudsen	England (27 pts) Kenny Carter Kelvin Tatum	United States (22 pts) Bobby Schwartz Shawn Moran
1986	Rottalstadion Pocking	Denmark (46+5 pts) Hans Nielsen Erik Gundersen	United States (46+4 pts) Kelly Moran Sam Ermolenko	Czechoslovakia (32 pts) Antonín Kasper Jr. Roman Matoušek
1987	Svítkov Stadion Pardubice	Denmark (52 pts) Erik Gundersen Hans Nielsen	England (44 pts) Simon Wigg Kelvin Tatum	United States (36 pts) Sam Ermolenko Kelly Moran
1988	Odsal Stadium Bradford	Denmark (45 pts) Hans Nielsen Erik Gundersen	England (41 pts) Kelvin Tatum Simon Cross	United States (39 pts) Shawn Moran Sam Ermolenko
1989	Alfred Smoczyk Stadium Leszno	Denmark (48 pts) Hans Nielsen Erik Gundersen	Sweden (44 pts) Jimmy Nilsen Per Jonsson	England (37 pts) Kelvin Tatum Paul Thorp
1990	Ellermühle Stadium Landshut	Denmark (43 pts) Jan O. Pedersen Hans Nielsen	Australia (41 pts) Todd Wiltshire Leigh Adams	Hungary (33 pts) Zoltán Adorján Sándor Tihanyi
1991	Olimpia Poznań Stadium Poznań	Denmark (28 pts) Hans Nielsen Jan O. Pedersen Tommy Knudsen	Sweden (24 pts) Henrik Gustafsson Jimmy Nilsen Per Jonsson	Norway (19 pts) Lars Gunnestad Einar Kyllingstad Tor Einar Hielm
1992	Santa Marina Stadium Lonigo	United States (23+3 pts) Greg Hancock Sam Ermolenko Ronnie Correy	England (23+2 pts) Gary Havelock Kelvin Tatum Martin Dugard	Sweden (22 pts) Per Jonsson Henrik Gustafsson Tony Rickardsson
1993	Vojens Speedway Center Vojens	Sweden (26 pts) Tony Rickardsson Per Jonsson Henrik Gustafsson	United States (23 pts) Sam Ermolenko Ronnie Correy Greg Hancock	Denmark (21 pts) Hans Nielsen Tommy Knudsen Brian Karger

Medal classification

Pos	National Team	Total
1.	Denmark	17	8	3	6
2.	Great Britain/  England	17	7	7	3
3.	Sweden	14	5	5	4
4.	United States	8	3	2	3
5.	New Zealand	8	2	4	2
6.	Poland	6	1	2	3
7.	Australia	3	-	3	-
8.	Norway	2	-	-	2
=9.	Czechoslovakia	1	-	-	1
=9.	West Germany	1	-	-	1

Pos	Rider	Team	Total
1.	Hans Nielsen	Denmark	11	7	1	3
2.	Erik Gundersen	Denmark	7	5	1	1
3.	Peter Collins	England	5	4	1
4.	Anders Michanek	Sweden	5	3	1	1
5.	Malcolm Simmons	England	4	3	1
6.	Ivan Mauger	New Zealand	8	2	4	2
7.	Tommy Jansson	Sweden	3	2	1
8.	Bobby Schwartz	United States	3	2		1
9.	Jan O. Pedersen	Denmark	2	2
10.	Ole Olsen	Denmark	7	1	2	4

See also

• Motorcycle speedway
• Speedway of Nations, the current incarnation of the World Pairs Championship

References

1. "Best Pairs International Championship FIM". Historis Sportu Zuzlowego. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
2. Bott, Richard (1980). The Peter Collins Speedway Book No.4. Stanley Paul & Co Ltd. p. 99. ISBN   0-09-141751-1.
3. Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 134. ISBN   0-904584-45-3.
4. Bott, Richard (1980). The Peter Collins Speedway Book No.4. Stanley Paul & Co Ltd. p. 99. ISBN   0-09-141751-1.
5. Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. pp. 27–28. ISBN   0-86215-017-5.
6. Matthews/Morrison, Peter/Ian (1987). The Guinness Encyclopaedia of Sports Records and Results. Guinness Superlatives. p. 290. ISBN   0-85112-492-5.
7. "Speedway riders, history and results". wwosbackup. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
8. "World Pairs Championship 1968-1993". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 11 July 2021.