1968 World Pairs

[Robbie B]

The World Pairs Championship maybe no longer held, but in 1968 there was a World best pairs competition held on September 1, in Kempton, West Germany. I know that the FIM no longer consider the 1969 championship as official, but everyone seems forgotten about the 1968 championship.

 

I don't have any Speedway Stars or other speedway magazines from this year, but the details were published in the 1969 BSPA handbook. And also in the 1970 version of this book it listed the 1969 winners Ivan Mauger & Bob Andrews, with reference in the roll call to the 1968 winners.

 

The 1968 details are listed below

Sweden 24 (Ove Fundin 14, Torbjorn Harrysson 10)

Great Britain 21 (Geoff Mudge 12, Ray Wilson 9)

Norway 16 (Odd Fossengen 11, Ovid S.Berg 5)

West Germany II 12 (P.Barth 9, R.Kast 3)

Wes Germany I 10 (Manfred Poschenreider 8, F.Aberl 2, R.Jungling 0)

Denmark 6 (J.Hauser 4, K.Petersen 2)

 

In the magazines of the time, did they list this meeting as being an official World Pairs Championship?

 

 

 

[norbold]

Do you know why they are no longer considered official?

 

I know that Bob Andrews and Ivan Mauger still personally count their win in 1969 as official.

[arnieg]

Do you know why they are no longer considered official?

 

I know that Bob Andrews and Ivan Mauger still personally count their win in 1969 as official.

I'm fairly sure that the 1968 event was always billed as a trial meeting, but the 1969 one was certainly regarded as official at the time and for many years after. When and why the FIM retrospectively changed the status of the 1969 event remains a mystery to me

[Robbie B]

Do you know why they are no longer considered official?

 

I know that Bob Andrews and Ivan Mauger still personally count their win in 1969 as official.

 

Sorry Norbold I don't know they no longer consider them to be unofficial.

 

They should be classified as official, I think.

[Bavarian]

I'm fairly sure that the 1968 event was always billed as a trial meeting, but the 1969 one was certainly regarded as official at the time and for many years after. When and why the FIM retrospectively changed the status of the 1969 event remains a mystery to me

This is correct. The 1968 event was always intended as a trial run for this newly invented competition to see how it goes. It was followed by an "official" championship in the following year of 1969. It is a mystery as to why and when the FIM decided this 1969 event not to be regarded as official any more. The riders still have their gold, silver and bronze medals from this event to show.

 

There was a similar FIM test meeting the year before the first official world team cup, which was inaugurated in 1960. The 1959 "European" Team Cup Final, intended as a trial before the world team cup was given official blessing, was run in West Germany at Oberhausen, and if memory serves me correct, the four teams competing in this final were Germany, Great Britain, Poland and Norway (not sure)!

[Robbie B]

This is correct. The 1968 event was always intended as a trial run for this newly invented competition to see how it goes. It was followed by an "official" championship in the following year of 1969. It is a mystery as to why and when the FIM decided this 1969 event not to be regarded as official any more. The riders still have their gold, silver and bronze medals from this event to show.

 

There was a similar FIM test meeting the year before the first official world team cup, which was inaugurated in 1960. The 1959 "European" Team Cup Final, intended as a trial before the world team cup was given official blessing, was run in West Germany at Oberhausen, and if memory serves me correct, the four teams competing in this final were Germany, Great Britain, Poland and Norway (not sure)!

 

Thanks for the info Bavarian.

 

Can you remember if Great Britain won the 1959 European Team Cup Final?

 

[Sotonian]

Swe 46

WG 32

GB 31

Nor 10

[Sotonian]

I know that Bob Andrews and Ivan Mauger still personally count their win in 1969 as official.

Ivan is absolutely adamant about it, more so on behalf of Bob who he is determined should not lose his place in the record books.

[TonyMac]

Ivan is absolutely adamant about it, more so on behalf of Bob who he is determined should not lose his place in the record books.

 

 

Absolutely. Our new in-depth interview with Bob Andrews for the next issue of Classic Speedway includes a two-page personal account from him about how he and him won the 1969 World Pairs Final in Stockholm. Some funny and interesting stuff from BA...you'll have to read it to find out how Swedish sex shops got a mention as part of the Kiwis' pre-meeting build up! In fact, Bob didn't even want to ride in it at first because his bike was all ready to be shipped back to NZ.

 

Bob says that not only do Ivan and he both consider their FIM medals as official, but that Ove Fundin also 'counts' his 1968 WP victory with Toby Harrysson as one of his official World Championship wins.

 

I, too, can't understand why the FIM have, as has been widely reported, not granted the 1969 WP official status. The fact is, the programme for the Western zone semi-final held at Wimbledon in August '69 has the FIM's name and logo all over it.

Edited September 7, 2009 by tmc

[Parsloes 1928 nearly]

Ivan is absolutely adamant about it, more so on behalf of Bob who he is determined should not lose his place in the record books.

 

And quite right too..

 

I think Speedway historians should totally ignore any daft retrospective dictate from the FIM...: clearly this WAS an official World Championship...