Workington 2024

[magnus 80]

7 hours ago, stevehone said:

i was at this meeting (you'll see me jogging across the track at the start of the video) and you have to take into account the number of laps Celina has done around there compared to others

So I think your saying Celina is more dialled into that track and Drew Kemp has limited experience there? So with the same mindset, please bear in mind that Celina has limited experience in the UK. So in comparison come on guys, give her some time to get dialled in to the UK tracks, as I believe almost all the current 4 point riders in the Championship have all got UK track experience.

Or have I interpreted this wrong? 

Edited December 27, 2023 by magnus

[foreverblue 6,096]

1 hour ago, magnus said:

So I think your saying Celina is more dialled into that track and Drew Kemp has limited experience there? So with the same mindset, please bear in mind that Celina has limited experience in the UK. So in comparison come on guys, give her some time to get dialled in to the UK tracks, as I believe almost all the current 4 point riders in the Championship have all got UK track experience.

Or have I interpreted this wrong? 

I think in that particular race she certainly seemed to pick the better lines but if she is competitive with a 5 point rider then she should achieve over her current average so as long as she does that then all good, if on the other hand that race turns out to be a one off then she may not achieve her assessed average, either way a brave move by Workington who are looking like a  decent team.

[Fromafar 10,363]

No disrespect to Celina and I wish her well,but when GB speedway has to sign a foreign girl rider to make up their Team shows the state of play.I know it’s going to create a bit of publicity ,but really.!!

[stevehone 3,429]

1 hour ago, magnus said:

So I think your saying Celina is more dialled into that track and Drew Kemp has limited experience there? So with the same mindset, please bear in mind that Celina has limited experience in the UK. So in comparison come on guys, give her some time to get dialled in to the UK tracks, as I believe almost all the current 4 point riders in the Championship have all got UK track experience.

Or have I interpreted this wrong? 

i think in that meeting Celina finished with about 6 points, Drew finished with 10.

what i'm saying is i think Worky will suit her better than some others out there.

I've also seen Drew comfortably beat Celina in Germany and Czecho

also that track in Gustrow was the typical German surface, a black powder, almost like ash

https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_womble/albums/72177720304193838/

 

Edited December 27, 2023 by stevehone

[Garry1603 353]

I think that the signing of Celine is undoubtably a marketing ploy to attract the media attention - and fans as well. If it attracts a few more young girls to watch the sport, and maybe even give it a try in the future, then Workington are to be applauded for their vision.

I don't think that anyone expects her to be desperately competitive, but that's not the real reason she has been given an opportunity.

Good luck to her and the promotion for having the balls to do this (I know what I did there!)

 

[StevePark 2,781]

Let's be totally honest here, the signing of Celina Leibmann is a win/win for Workington.  The publicity for the signing is going to be pretty big (within speedway circles, certainly and, maybe even in a broader sense if some of the National papers and TV pick up on it, which they could well do) and IF she is a success even better for Workington.  IF she "flops", then another 4pointer (or even 2pointer) shouldn't be too difficult to find and in the grand scheme of things Workington haven't really lost out on anything.

I really do wish her and Workington all the best and hope they are a big success in 2024 and beyond.

[stevehone 3,429]

1 minute ago, StevePark said:

Let's be totally honest here, the signing of Celina Leibmann is a win/win for Workington.  The publicity for the signing is going to be pretty big (within speedway circles, certainly and, maybe even in a broader sense if some of the National papers and TV pick up on it, which they could well do) and IF she is a success even better for Workington.  IF she "flops", then another 4pointer (or even 2pointer) shouldn't be too difficult to find and in the grand scheme of things Workington haven't really lost out on anything.

I really do wish her and Workington all the best and hope they are a big success in 2024 and beyond.

she is very popular in Germany, has quite a good following, and she's really friendly and good with fans, could be a big hit without necessarily scoring big points

[iris123 20,985]

6 minutes ago, StevePark said:

Let's be totally honest here, the signing of Celina Leibmann is a win/win for Workington.  The publicity for the signing is going to be pretty big (within speedway circles, certainly and, maybe even in a broader sense if some of the National papers and TV pick up on it, which they could well do) and IF she is a success even better for Workington.  IF she "flops", then another 4pointer (or even 2pointer) shouldn't be too difficult to find and in the grand scheme of things Workington haven't really lost out on anything.

I really do wish her and Workington all the best and hope they are a big success in 2024 and beyond.

Was a Danish girl signed to a Polish club over a decade back. That was certainly publicity, as I don't think she ever rode in a meeting

I agree this will bring a good bit of publicity to the club. Certainly it seems a big thing within the FIM. So within wider motorsports circles as well. Could be used further in national newspapers, rather like Lindbâck getting national coverage. 

Like you, I hope it works out for all

[ragdoll64 647]

40 minutes ago, foreverblue said:

I think in that particular race she certainly seemed to pick the better lines but if she is competitive with a 5 point rider then she should achieve over her current average so as long as she does that then all good, if on the other hand that race turns out to be a one off then she may not achieve her assessed average, either way a brave move by Workington who are looking like a  decent team.

Going by her celebration after the race I would imagine it to be an unusual result for her…..but good on her, it was a great ride. I wish her all the best for next year and congratulate Workington on their ambitious move. 

[Bagpuss 10,780]

26 minutes ago, Fromafar said:

No disrespect to Celina and I wish her well,but when GB speedway has to sign a foreign girl rider to make up their Team shows the state of play.I know it’s going to create a bit of publicity ,but really.!!

In fairness thete are going to be a lot of young British riders in the Championship this year, more than for quite a few seasons I'd imagine. Workington are also starting from scratch in building a team for the second division and have very few if any assets so signing new foreign riders makes sense.

I wish them and her all the best, I hope its a successful move and season. 

[topaz325 1,856]

It's the first positive news in League Speedway for 20 years. 
Anyone who can find a negative needs to re - set and remember why they started watching the sport all those years ago. 
This absolute obsession with numbers / assessed averages it's all bull rubbish. 
People, more particularly first time visitors, want to get value for money and be entertained. 
Nothing more, nothing less.

 

Quote from Aussie rider 

[scaramanga 902]

2 hours ago, Fromafar said:

No disrespect to Celina and I wish her well,but when GB speedway has to sign a foreign girl rider to make up their Team shows the state of play.I know it’s going to create a bit of publicity ,but really.!!

Who says workington had to sign her 

I'm sure there's plenty other options with the points left for 3 riders before she was announced

[Fromafar 10,363]

27 minutes ago, scaramanga said:

Who says workington had to sign her 

I'm sure there's plenty other options with the points left for 3 riders before she was announced

Nobody.

[arnieg 3,643]

2 hours ago, iris123 said:

Was a Danish girl signed to a Polish club over a decade back. That was certainly publicity, as I don't think she ever rode in a meeting

I agree this will bring a good bit of publicity to the club. Certainly it seems a big thing within the FIM. So within wider motorsports circles as well. Could be used further in national newspapers, rather like Lindbâck getting national coverage. 

Like you, I hope it works out for all

Nanna Jorgensen, and yes the PR surrounding it (lots of 'glamour shots') made it feel like a stunt.

There is currently another Dane Maja Aamand who performs well in Danish Lge 1 (not far short of Tobias Thomsen)

[Grachan 7,362]

Well, this is a signing that has attracted interest by quite a few people - including myself. I'm not sure if I've even looked at a Workington thread before.

The only time I've seen Celina Liebmann race when she was in the SGP2. She struggled in that meeting against riders who, I guess, were above Championship reserve standard. At the same time, she had no trouble beating the reserves who, presumably, were below it.

It would be great to see a female rider in the sport who can compete against the men. If anyone can, she can. She's a proper rider with a good style and looks like a decent gater from the couple of races I watched on Youtube.