Jump to content
British Speedway Forum

Holland's Top Riders


Guest

Recommended Posts

Here are some Holland riders to stimulate interest - a possible best five will do.

Henny Kroeze

Rudy Muts

Henk Stemen Snr

Henk Stemen Jnr

Frits Koppe

Gerrit Kops

Nico Van Corcum

Cor Van Corcum

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Henny Kroeze

Henk Steman Snr

Theo Pijper

Rudy Muts

Fritz Koppe

I would base my assessment on those who competed within the BL with some success and Henny would come out top easily. First rider to register a 21 point maximum in the British League. Saw him ride during the 1987 World Final (Amsterdam) but was well past his best by then and was well out of place with his foot forward style.

 

Ruddy showed promise at Wimbledon before, I believe, an injury curtailed his career.

 

Theo rode a number of years at Edinburgh (?) but I never saw him (I think).

 

Was aware of Henk Steman Jnr who rode for Oxford (my team) and later Bristol but was generally disappointing.

Edited by steve roberts
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gerrit Kops was the first Dutch rider to catch the attention of a British club. 1939 Sheffield promoter Bluey Wilkinson had a trial ride booked for Kops in September 1939 but it never took place because of the outbreak of WW2 on the Sunday before the meeting.

There must have been a 'Sheffield jinx' on Kops and Sheffield. Ten years later he was a starter in a World Championship round at Sheffield. This time he had engine trouble on the starting line in his first ride and took no further part in the meeting.

​The only other time, so far as I can trace, that Kops appeared in Britain was in October 1947 when he was a member of a Dutch team that appeared at Tamworth in a benefit meeting for a local rider Jack Ladd who lost his life riding at Alkmaar, Holland, in August 1947.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Privacy Policy