Speedway in Poland


Speedway is one of the most popular sports in Poland. The Polish Extraleague has the highest average attendances for any sport in Poland. The first meetings in Poland were held in the 1930s.Kevin Meynell & Marcin Babnis, Retrieved 25 October 2014.
Speedway in Poland is governed by the Main Commission of Speedway Sport which is a part of the Polish Motor Union. PZM is a member of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme and the Union Européenne de Motocyclisme.

National team

Poland has produced three Individual World Champion - Jerzy Szczakiel who won in 1973, Tomasz Gollob who won in the 2010 Individual Speedway World Championships and Bartosz Zmarzlik who won in 2019. Polish junior riders are among the best in the world. The Polish National U-21 team won the Under 21 World Championship since 2005 in every years. Besides, since 2000 Polish juniors won medals of Individual U-21 World Championship. Polish riders have been World Champions seven times at Under 21 level.

Championships

There are three types of speedway championships in Poland: individual, pairs, and team, consisting of three leagues. The Junior U-21 championships also consist of three categories: individual, pairs, and team.

Teams (league competition)

There are three speedway leagues in Poland:
  1. Speedway Extraleague
  2. First League
  3. Second League . Since 2004 the Second League has included clubs from other countries, such as:
In the 2009 season, the Extraleague and First League have eight teams competing. The second League has seven teams. Notably, KS Toruń has never been relegated to a lower division.

Competitions

Polish Cup

GKSŻ organizes the Golden Helmet, Silver Helmet and Bronze Helmet competitions.
  1. The Golden Helmet is a single meeting held in PC Team 3rd from last season, with the top twelve riders in the Extraleague and the top four riders in the First League. The Winner get a new motorcycle Java.
  2. The Silver Helmet is an individual competition for riders under 21 years of age for the top sixteen riders in the Extraleague, the top ten riders in the First League, and the six two riders in the Second League competing. A Final event held in PC Team U-21 3rd from last season.
  3. The Bronze Helmet is an individual competition similar to the Silver Helmet except the riders must be under 19 years of age. Riders are nominated for this competition by their teams.

    Friendly competition

Other competitions include, e.g.:
  1. Mieczysław Połukard Criterium of Polish Speedway Leagues Aces held in the Polonia Stadium in Bydgoszcz. It is seen by riders and fans as the official opening of the new season. First staged in 1982, although a similar meeting was held in the 1950s.
  2. Crest Chain of Ostrów Town held in Ostrów Wielkopolski. It is the official end of season meeting. First staged in 1978.
  3. Alfred Smoczyk Memorial Alfred Smoczyk was the first Polish speedway superstar. He successfully competed on Dutch tracks in the late 1940s, but died in a road accident in October 1950. This meeting has been held every year since 1951 in Leszno, where he lived, in the Alfred Smoczyk Stadium.
  4. Edward Jancarz Memorial in Gorzów Wielkopolski.

    Speedway Grand Prix in Poland

In 2010 season, Poland hosts three Speedway Grand Prix events,
  1. Leszno at Alfred Smoczyk Stadium and
  2. Toruń at MotoArena Toruń.
Previously, SGP events hosted in:
  1. Chorzów at Silesian Stadium and
  2. Wrocław at Olympic Stadium

    Panorama

Famous riders