GrasstrackRacingDrenthe

Hey Iris, I found a speedway website from Bulgaria: http://speedway-bg.com/ This site seems still active to me (last news item was posted on September 15, 2021, this was of course the end of the season). Maybe you can get more info here via Google Translate (I don't know about you but my Bulgarian is not what it used to be haha)

I think this is an initiative to consider (if I were on the FIM track sports committee I would certainly consider this). When it becomes financially easier for clubs to organize big matches, there will certainly be more interest from countries where this is not possible at the moment. I mean: in the Netherlands a club is happy when 1500 people come to watch a Speedway race, with 1500 people you can never cover the costs of organising an World Championchip race (even a quali round). With lower organizational costs, the tickets can also be made affordable, which also attracts more locals who are only curious. A club will have more profit after an big match, which makes it more interesting to organize. But this is not the point I want to make. In my view, it is more important to start developing the sport at the bottom. Everyone has something to say about organizing World Cup matches, but let's face it: When the world championchip only consist of Poles, Swedes, Danes and a few lost Australians. Then the world championship will still be organized and the FIM will still be doing its thing: organizing world championships. I firmly believe that we need to look at the breadth of the sport. And that means learning from others, for example take the initiative in Estonia that I mentioned earlier.

Thank you Henry! I had indeed not mentioned all the countries that I know of, who still actively organize speedway races. But you give me a good overview of the active speedway countries, unfortunately they are only getting fewer. For example, I myself was a spectator in Sankt Johann (Austria) a few years ago. they have a great stadium there (especially the location between the mountains gives a great atmosphere) it also attracted quite a number of visitors there too. In fact, it is an eternal shame if something like this disappears due to the loss of interest in the sport... The same in Croatia indeed, in Gorican there is a speedway stadium that many English or Polish clubs can envy. But there is not a single local driver. Are there any efforts in these countries to revive the sport? What I know about both countries is that the love for the country is great in these countries. (I have quite a few international contacts due to my work as a transport planner). I can therefore imagine that these beautiful stadiums are better filled with spectators when a local rider actually competes for the prizes. Of course I can't go into all countries in 1 comment, but these happen to be 2 countries that I know have beautiful stadiums but unfortunately very little activity. When it's all about money (which will definitely play a part). It might be something to not only want to develop the sport in your own country, but also to see how the sport develops internationally. How do you make the sport attractive to young riders, how do you make the sport more affordable to enroll. And how do you trigger beginners to continue with the sport. I want to pick up on that a little bit. for a few years back Joel Sudniviks with his team (Sidecar 102) was a regular guest at our house. They were on a race tour in Europe from Estonia for a summer and used our workshop for their sidecars during this time. Joel then told me that in Estonia they had started organizing speedway races in Tabasalu again. They had developed a speedway frame for the youth that you can use from 50cc to 150cc. This was also adjustable in height so that the motorcycle grows with the rider. in this way they managed to cut costs and made it so interesting to start with the sport. And when I now look in to the international results, I see more and more young riders from Estonia who are certainly not doing without merit. and as for Discovery, I think they're missing the point a bit. After the press conference with a high Eurovision Song Contest content, I think we all hoped that they would reveal their ambitious plan. if only to start in 2022 to create a broader speedway sport from 2023.

Goodmorning, I am new to this forum, so my apologies if this is not the right place to start this topic. I have been active since 2000 as an amateur grass track and speedway driver (since 2010 in the 500cc class) in the Netherlands with an occasional trip to Germany and France.. Unfortunately my speedway bike has not seen any gravel since 2015, due to a lack of races here in the Netherlands (when I started there were more than 10 races here divided over 4 cirquits. In 2022 there is unfortunately no longer an official meeting in the Netherlands) This aroused my interest in how the sport is developing internationally. I am curious in how many countries speedway will still be actively operated in 2022. Because of my interest I follow the international speedway closely. I am also familiar with the competitions in Great Britain, Poland, Germany (where the sport is developing rapidly if you ask me), Argentina, the USA, Sweden, Denmark and France. But how is this in other countries? For example, what is left of speedway in countries like Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, New Zealand, Canada or South Africa. In my view, quite a few drivers came from here who are decent drivers internationally. (also in more recent times, Hauzinger, Gappmair, Zagar, Skorja, Pavlic, Wilson Dean, Kyle Legault and Byron Bekker for example). And what will happen to Discovery's ambitious plan to develop the sport internationally? After the press conference I was not able to find anything about this and also on the new speedway GP site there is little useful information about this. My apologies for this huge wall of text. However, I hope to learn more about international developments in the sport through this forum (you won't find everything by google haha^^)