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Anders Michanek

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Anders Michanek
Anders Michanek at the 1975 Intercontinental Final
Born (1943-05-30) 30 May 1943 (age 81)
Stockholm, Sweden
NationalitySwedish
Career history
Sweden
1965–1966, 1984–1985Gamarna
1967–1983Getingarna
1989Rospiggarna
Great Britain
1967Long Eaton Archers
1968Leicester Lions
1970Newcastle Diamonds
1971–1973, 1975, 1981Reading Racers
1977Cradley Heathens
1979Ipswich Witches
Individual honours
1974World Champion
1977Long Track World Champion
1972, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1982Swedish Champion[1]
1973European Final winner
1967, 1973Brandonapolis
1973Pride of the East
1973Blue Riband
1973Spring Classic
1967Olympique
1973Superama
1973Golden Gauntlets
Team honours
1973, 1974, 1975World Pairs Champion
1970World Team Champion
1973British League Champion
1965, 1970, 1974, 1975Swedish Pairs Champion
1967, 1969, 1974,
1978, 1979, 1980, 1981
Allsvenskan Champion
1982, 1983Elitserien Champion
1965Allsvenskan Div 2 Champion
1972Spring Gold Cup Winner

Anders Michanek (born 30 May 1943 in Stockholm, Sweden)[2] is a Speedway rider.[3] In 1974 he won the Speedway World Championship in his Swedish homeland with a maximum score of 15 points.[4][5] He earned 101 caps for the Sweden national speedway team.[6]

Career

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Michanek had a very successful career riding in the British League. He initially signed for the Long Eaton Archers in 1967 before going on to ride for various clubs including Leicester Lions, Newcastle Diamonds, Reading Racers, Ipswich Witches and Cradley Heathens.[6]

Michaenk won the Speedway World Team Cup with Sweden in 1970.

During the 1971 Swedish final, Michanek refused to pariticpate in a re-run for the title and was disqualified. Michanek and Göte Nordin both finished on 14 points and in the race off Michanek beat Nordin after the latter pulled out of the race, claiming that he saw a red light to stop the race. The match referee ordered a re-run but Michanek refused to take part claiming there was no red light. The incident resulted in violence between rival supporters and was headline news in Sweden.[7] Michanek contemplated retirement from the sport but continued to ride. Spurred on by the incident he went on to win the Swedish title the following year and then won four more during his career.

In 1973, he won the 1973 Speedway World Pairs Championship partnering Tommy Jansson in Borås.[8]

Michanek won the World Final in 1974 at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, and won the Swedish Individual Championship several times.[9] He also successfully defended his world pairs crown in 1974 at the Hyde Road Speedway in Manchester with Sören Sjösten. he won for a third time in succession in 1975 in Wrocław, Poland, with Tommy Jansson again.[10]

When Michanek finished second behind Denmark's Ole Olsen in the 1975 World Final at London's Wembley Stadium, it was reported that he was relieved to have relinquished his world title as he had not enjoyed the pressure of being the World Champion. Reports also told that he only started to enjoy the 1975 Final after finishing third in his opening heat behind Olsen and Russian rider Viktor Trofimov knowing that from that point he was not likely to repeat his 1974 win. This was reflected when he came out and won his final four races to finish 2 points behind the undefeated Olsen in second place.

In 1977, Michanek won the Long Track World Championship in Aalborg, Denmark.[11]

World Final Appearances

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Individual World Championship

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World Pairs Championship

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World Team Cup

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Long Track World Championship

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References

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  1. ^ Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 85. ISBN 0-86215-017-5.
  2. ^ Oakes, Peter; Mauger, Ivan OBE (1976). Who's Who of World Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. ISBN 0-904584-04-6.
  3. ^ Lawson,K (2018) “Riders, Teams and Stadiums”. ISBN 978-0-244-72538-9
  4. ^ Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
  5. ^ Montague, Trevor (2004). The A-Z of Sport. Little, Brown. p. 524. ISBN 0-316-72645-1.
  6. ^ a b "Ultimate rider index, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Reading speed star in row". Reading Evening Post. 4 October 1971. Retrieved 16 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ^ "Sweden's title". Star Green 'un. 14 September 1958. Retrieved 7 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ^ "Swedish Champion", Speedway Star, 9 September 1978, p. 8
  10. ^ "Another world title for Mich". Reading Evening Post. 16 June 1975. Retrieved 8 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  11. ^ "World Long Track", Speedway Star, 9 September 1978, p. 8