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Göte Nordin now


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1 hour ago, chunky said:

Well, we had two of those at Plough Lane!

We had them at their peak!

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2 hours ago, cityrebel said:

Before my time Steve, but saw them ride several times for Wembley in 1971. My nan lived in nearby Notting Hill Gate, so i was a Regular at the Empire Stadium in the Lions last two seasons.

Hey, don't get TOO carried away, Tony! I was only born in 1962, so I'm not really old enough to actually remember them riding for us...

My clearest memory of Sverre is from when he broke his arm in 1970 (Christer Lofqvist's debut).

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2 hours ago, chunky said:

Hey, don't get TOO carried away, Tony! I was only born in 1962, so I'm not really old enough to actually remember them riding for us...

My clearest memory of Sverre is from when he broke his arm in 1970 (Christer Lofqvist's debut).

You and me both mate. My first ever meeting at Custom House.

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10 hours ago, OveFundinFan said:

Remember him riding for Belle Vue. A good clean rider who was populalr with the fans.

Nothing written about him on Wikipedia - a chance there for someone who knows how to do it and with some knowledge of Gote.

May have been 'Briggo' but I recall him saying that Gote was a bit like Anders Michanek...a gentleman off the track but hard as nails when racing hence the phrase "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" which, I think, he coined?

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2 hours ago, steve roberts said:

May have been 'Briggo' but I recall him saying that Gote was a bit like Anders Michanek...a gentleman off the track but hard as nails when racing hence the phrase "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" which, I think, he coined?

Haha, you got the quote the right way around this time Steve ! !  :)

 

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7 minutes ago, BL65 said:

I saw Gote at his immaculate best in 1966 and 1967, when two successive wins in the Internationale at Wimbledon were achieved with sublime 15 point maximums against very high quality opposition.

Göte's name always seems to come up when "the best riders never to win the world title" is discussed.

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NORDIN, Göte

 

Born: July 2, 1935, Falun, Sweden.

 

A Swedish speedway legend and one of the best riders in the world never to win the World Championship, ‘Gentleman’ Göte Nordin was a complete stylist and was much respected by fans throughout the U.K. He had started his career with the famous Gentingarna club in the mid-1950s and quickly progressed to the international side, making his debut for his country in October, 1955 against Poland at Stockholm. It was not until the early part of the 1960s that he became an automatic choice for his country and he made his league bow in Britain in 1960, joining Belle Vue and averaging over six points per match in the National League for the ‘Aces’.

 

He hit the big time the following year - despite riding just one match for the ‘Aces’ - as he qualified for his first World final – the first ever to be held outside its traditional home of Wembley. The final took place at Malmö and Göte crowned a superb night for the host nation as he finished third behind the champion, Ove Fundin and runner-up Bjorn Knutsson. He was now firmly established as one of the top riders in the world but rarely appeared in league racing in Britain as he preferred to concentrate on domestic speedway in Sweden and the lucrative continental scene. Further World final appearances followed in 1962 and 1963 and he was part of the Swedish World Team Cup side that dominated the competition in the early part of the decade. Finally, in 1964, Göte was tempted to ride a full league season in the U.K., joining Wimbledon as the ‘Dons’ looked to fill the gap left by the retirement of Ronnie Moore.

 

He had a superb season at Plough Lane, averaging 10.33 points per match and finishing second in the league figures behind Barry Briggs. The non-resident Swedes were frozen out of the newly formed British League in 1965 but Göte was back the following year for what was probably his most memorable season in the U.K., riding for the Newport ‘Wasps’ at Somerton Park. He was absolutely magnificent that year as he proved to be almost unbeatable at home and regularly chalked up double figures on away tracks, boosting his average to almost ten and a half points per match and drawing in the crowds wherever he rode. His beautiful style and impeccable fairness won him the deserved ‘Gentleman’ tag and the next team to benefit from his point scoring abilities was Poole, for whom he again turned in an excellent season.

 

By this time Göte had reached his mid-30s and his chance of the World title had passed, with the 1967 campaign at Poole being his last as a full-time British League rider as he quit the ‘Pirates’ after just one match in 1968 to take over the running of the JAWA franchise in his home country. Over the next few years Göte faded from the international scene somewhat and became a man that British clubs would turn to when they needed an experienced and accomplished rider to get them out of an injury crisis with short spells at Coventry, Wembley, and finally Halifax in 1972 where he replaced the broken leg victim, Dave Younghusband. His last appearance for Sweden came in the World Team Cup final at Olching that year and soon afterwards the curtain was brought down on the career of one of the finest and most popular Swedes ever to have graced the sport.

 

Year

Club

Division

M

R

P

BP

TP

CMA

FM

PM

1960

Belle Vue

NL

15

69

91

18

109

6.32

-

-

1961

Belle Vue

NL

1

5

7

0

7

5.60

-

-

1962

Norwich

NL

2

9

26

0

26

11.56

1

-

1964

Wimbledon

NL

14

60

154

1

155

10.33

4

-

1966

Newport

BL

32

146

367

14

381

10.44

10

3

1967

Poole

BL

34

147

356

11

367

9.99

8

-

1968

Poole

BL1

1

4

11

1

12

12.00

-

1

1969

Coventry

BL1

3

13

25

3

28

8.62

-

-

1971

Wembley

BL1

11

46

101

3

104

9.04

-

-

1972

Halifax

BL1

12

51

97

7

104

8.16

-

-

 

Individual Honours: World Finalist 1961 (3rd), 1962 (8th), 1963 (5th), 1966 (6th), Swedish Champion 1965, 1971.

International Honours: World Team Cup winner 1962, 1963, 1964, 1967, World Team Cup finalist 1965, 1966, 1972, Swedish international 45 caps, 379 points.

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