1956 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1956 Individual Speedway World Championship was the 11th edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.[1][2][3][4][5][6]

The World final was sponsored by the Sunday Dispatch and was televised live.[7] Despite being televised a crowd of 65,000 saw the first Scandinavian winner in 23 year old Ove Fundin from Sweden.[8][9]

Qualification

Qualification started in 1955.[10][11]

Stage 1

Norwegian qualification

The October 1955 Norwegian final was cancelled due to bad weather, resulting in riders being seeded to Nordic round

Finnish round

Pos. Rider Points
1 Kauko Jousanen 15
2 Antti Pajari 14
3 Simo Ylänen 11
4 Janne Rihkajrvi 11
5 Aulis Tuominen 10
6 Pertti Mikkola 9
7 Erkki Ala Sippola 9
8 Paavo Mikkola 7
9 Pekka Tenko 7
10 Raimo Kivinen 6
11 Toimi Koskela 4
12 Nils Staaf 4
13 Reino Niemi 4
14 Pentti Paajanen 3
15 Kalevi Lahtinen 3
16 Antti Mattila 2

Swedish round

Pos. Rider Points
1 Dan Forsberg 14
2 Ulf Ericsson 13
3 Bernt Nilsson 13
4 Birger Forsberg 11
5 Lars Pettersson 11
6 Per-Tage Svensson 9
7 Sune Karlsson 8
8 Sven Fahlén 8
9 Bert Lindarw 7
10 Olle Segerström 6
11 Rune Claesson 6
12 Bengt Eriksson 6
13 Göte Nordin 5
14 Alf Jonsson 2
15 Thorsten Carlsson 2
16 Thorvald Karlsson 0
Pos. Rider Points
1 Rune Sörmander 15
2 Olle Andersson II 13
3 Göran Norlén 11
4 Stig Pramberg 11
5 Allan Nilsson 10
6 Per-Olof Söderman 10
7 Olle Heyman 9
8 Bertil Carlsson II 8
9 Kaj Forsberg 7
10 Joel Jansson 6
11 Roger Forsberg 6
12 Evert Andersson 5
13 Olle Andersson I 5
14 Bengt Gustafsson 2
15 Per Sjöholm 1
16 Åke Andersson 1
17 Bo Sandin 0

Stage 2

Nordic round

Pos. Rider Points
1 Henry Andersen 14
2 Göran Norlén 11
3 Rune Sörmander 11
4 Reidar Kristoffersen 11
5 Olle Andersson II 11
6 Per-Olof Söderman 10
7 Stig Pramberg 10
8 Aage Hansen 9
9 Antti Pajari 9
10 Jörgen Stabirk 5
11 Werner Lorentzen 5
12 Roger Steen 4
13 Torbjörn Ludvigsen 4
14 Erling Cae 2
15 Odd Johansen 2
16 Erhard Fisker 2
Pos. Rider Points
1 Bernt Nilsson 13
2 Ulf Ericsson 13
3 Birger Forsberg 12
4 Lars Pettersson 11
5 Rolf Westerberg 11
6 Dan Forsberg 10
7 Kaukko Jousanen 9
8 Simo Ylänen 9
9 Per-Tage Svensson 8
10 Aulis Tuominen 8
11 Erkki Ala-Sippola 4
12 Juha Rihkajärvi 4
13 Esko Koponen 3
14 Tore Mellby 2
15 Kalevi Lathinen 2
16 Pertti Mikkola 0

Continental round

Pos. Rider Points
1 Florian Kapala 13
2 Edward Kupczynski 12
3 Janusz Suchecki 11
4 Edmund Nazimek 11
5 Marian Kaiser 11
6 Hugo Rosak 10
7 Tadeusz Teodorowicz 10
8 Mieczyslaw Polukard 10
9 Wlodzimierz Szwendrowski 10
10 Josef Kysilka 5
11 Richard Janicek 4
12 Rudolf Havelka 4
13 Miloslav Špinka 4
14 Karel Polak 4
15 Jaroslav Machac 1
16 Alois Jarolim 0
Pos. Rider Points
1 Josef Hofmeister 15
2 Josef Siedl 14
3 Andrzej Krzesiński 13
4 Albin Siegl
5 Paul Cardang
6 Sebastian Wiesent
7 Alfred Aberl
8 Fritz Dirtl
9 Josef Kamper

Stage 3

British & Commonwealth round

  • Top 21 qualify for Championship round.[12]
Date Venue Winner
10 July Banister Court Stadium Ian Williams
12 July Foxhall Stadium Ken McKinlay
12 July Oxford Stadium Howdy Byford
13 July Leicester Stadium Dick Bradley
14 July Rayleigh Weir Stadium Gerald Jackson
25 July Brandon Stadium Bert Edwards
25 July Abbey Stadium Bob Roger

Nordic Final

Pos. Rider Points
1 Sweden Dan Forsberg 15
2 Sweden Ulf Ericsson 14
3 Sweden Rune Sörmander 13
4 Sweden Bernt Nilsson 12
5 Sweden Göran Norlén 11
6 Sweden Per Olof Söderman 9
7 Sweden Birger Forsberg 9
8 Sweden Ole Andersson 7
9 Sweden Per Tage Svensson 6
10 Norway Aage Hansen 5
11 Norway Rolf Westerberg 5
12 Sweden Stig Pramberg 3
13 Sweden Lars Pettersson 1
14 Finland Antti Pajari 1
15 Finland Simo Ylänen 0
16 Norway Reidar Kristoffersen dnr
17 Finland Kaukko Jousanen dnr

Continental Final

Fritz Dirtl was tragically killed competing in the Continental final. He was involved in a crash with fellow Austrian rider Josef Kamper and the fell into the path of Mieczysław Połukard.[13]

Pos. Rider Points
1 Sweden Kjell Carlsson 14
2 West Germany Josef Seidl 14
3 Poland Andrzej Krzesiński 11
4 Poland Włodzimierz Szwendrowski 10
5 Poland Tadeusz Teodorowicz 10
6 Poland Edward Kupczyński 9
7 Poland Florian Kapała 9
8 Poland Mieczysław Połukard 9
9 West Germany Albin Siegl 7
10 Czechoslovakia Hugo Rosák 7
11 West Germany Josef Hofmeister 5
12 Netherlands Paul Cardang 5
13 West Germany Sebastian Wiesent 5
14 West Germany Alfred Aberl 2
15 Austria Fritz Dirtl 0
16 Austria Josef Kamper 0
17 Poland Janusz Suchecki dnr
18 Poland Edmund Nazimek dnr
19 Poland Marian Kaiser dnr

Stage 4

Championship Round

  • Top 11 qualify, 1 reserve for World final
Date Venue Winner
20 August Wimbledon Stadium Ronnie Moore
22 August Wimborne Road Jack Biggs
23 August Wembley Stadium Brian Crutcher
25 August Hyde Road Stadium Brian Crutcher
29 August Odsal Stadium Barry Briggs
31 August Perry Barr Stadium Alan Hunt / Doug Davies
1 September The Firs Stadium Gerry Hussey

Scores
First 11 to World final + 1 reserve

Pos. Rider Total pts
1 England Brian Crutcher 29
2 New Zealand Ronnie Moore 27
3 England Gerry Hussey 26
4 England Alan Hunt 26
5 Scotland Ken McKinlay 26
6 South Africa Doug Davies 25
7 New Zealand Barry Briggs 25
8 England Arthur Forrest 25
9 England Dick Fisher 24
10 England Eric Boothroyd 24
11 England Peter Moore 23
12 Australia Jack Biggs 23
13 England Nigel Boocock 23
14 Australia Aub Lawson 22
15 England Split Waterman 22
16 England Ron How 20
17 New Zealand Ron Johnston 18
18 England Les McGillivray 17
19 England Bob Roger 17
20 England Billy Bales 17
21 New Zealand Bob Duckworth 17
22 England Guy Allott 17
23 England Gerald Jackson 16
24 England Eric French 14
25 England Peter Williams 14
26 England Ron Clarke 14
27 England Bert Edwards 13
28 England Ken Middleditch 13
29 England Harry Bastable 13
Pos. Rider Total pts
30 England Cyril Roger 12
31 England Bert Roger 12
32 Australia Ray Cresp 12
33 England Ken Sharples 12
34 England Phil Clarke 11
35 England Cyril Maidment 10
36 England Jim Tolley 10
37 England Dick Bradley 9
38 England Alby Golden 9
39 England Arthur Wright 9
40 England George White 8
41 England Howdy Byford 8
42 England Ronnie Genz 8
43 Australia Bob Sharp 8
44 New Zealand Trevor Redmond 7
45 England Reg Trott 6
46 England Pete Lansdale 6
47 Australia Jack Geran 5
48 Australia Junior Bainbridge 5
49 England Bill Holden 4
50 England Ron Mountford 4
51 England Allan Kidd 4
52 England Cyril Brine 4
53 England Barry East 3
54 England Neil Mortimer 2
55 Scotland Gordon McGregor 2
56 England Alf Hagon 2
57 England Derek Tailby 2
58 New Zealand Bill Andrew 1

European Final

Pos. Rider Total
1 Sweden Ove Fundin 15
2 Sweden Per Olof Söderman 13
3 Sweden Ole Andersson 12
4 Sweden Ulf Ericsson 11
5 Sweden Rune Sörmander 10
6 Norway Henry Andersen 8
7 Poland Florian Kapała 8
8 Poland Edward Kupczyński 7
9 Sweden Göran Norlén 7
10 Sweden Dan Forsberg 6
11 Sweden Birger Forsberg 5
12 Sweden Bernt Nilsson 4
13 Poland Włodzimierz Szwendrowski 2
14 Poland Mieczysław Połukard 2
15 Poland Marian Kaiser 2
16 Poland Tadeusz Teodorowicz 2

World final

Pos. Rider Heat Scores Total
1 Sweden Ove Fundin (1,3,3,3,3) 13
2 New Zealand Ronnie Moore (2,2,2,3,3) 12
3 England Arthur Forrest (3,1,3,2,2) 11+3
4 England Peter Craven (3,1,2,2,3) 11+2
5 Scotland Ken McKinlay (2,2,3,3,0) 10
6 Sweden Per Olof Söderman (0,3,2,2,3) 10
7 New Zealand Barry Briggs (3,2,1,3,1) 10
8 England Brian Crutcher (1,3,3,0,2) 9
9 Australia Peter Moore (2,1,1,2,2) 8
10 England Eric Boothroyd (2,3,1,1,0) 7
11 England Alan Hunt (3,0,1,1,1) 6
12 England Dick Fisher (0,0,2,1,2) 5
13 South Africa Doug Davies (1,2,0,0,1) 4
14 Sweden Ole Andersson (1,1,0,0,0) 2
15 Sweden Ulf Ericsson (0,0,0,1,1) 2
16 England Gerry Hussey (0,0,0,0,0) 0
R1 Sweden Rune Sörmander absent -
R2 Australia Jack Biggs did not ride -
R3 England Nigel Boocock did not ride -

Classification

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos
1 Sweden (4) Ove Fundin 13 1 3 3 3 3 13 1
2 New Zealand (3) Ronnie Moore 12 2 2 2 3 3 12 2
3 England (5) Arthur Forrest 11+3 3 1 3 2 2 11 3
4 England (2) Peter Craven 11+2 3 1 2 2 3 11 4
5 Scotland (8) Ken McKinlay 10 2 2 3 3 0 10 5
6 Sweden (1) Per Olof Söderman 10 0 3 2 2 3 10 6
7 New Zealand (14) Barry Briggs 10 3 2 1 3 1 10 7
8 England (6) Brian Crutcher 9 1 3 3 0 2 9 8
9 Australia (15) Peter Moore 8 2 1 1 2 2 8 9
10 England (11) Eric Boothroyd 7 2 3 1 1 0 7 10
11 England (10) Alan Hunt 6 3 0 1 1 1 6 11
12 England (7) Dick Fisher 5 0 0 2 1 2 5 12
13 South Africa (13) Doug Davies 4 1 2 0 0 1 4 13
14 Sweden (12) Ole Andersson 2 1 1 0 0 0 2 14
15 Sweden (9) Ulf Ericsson 2 0 0 0 1 1 2 15
16 England (16) Gerry Hussey 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16
Australia (17) Jack Biggs 0 0
England (18) Nigel Boocock 0 0
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

References

  1. ^ Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. pp. 20–21. ISBN 0-86215-017-5.
  2. ^ "World Championship 1936–1994". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  3. ^ "WORLD FINALS 1936–1994" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  4. ^ "HISTORY SPEEDWAY and LONGTRACK". Speedway.org. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  5. ^ "Speedway riders, history and results". wwosbackup. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  6. ^ "WORLD INDIVIDUAL FINAL – RIDER INDEX". British Speedway. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  7. ^ "Craven defends title". Liverpool Echo. 20 September 1956. Retrieved 6 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ^ "Fundin is champ". Sunday Mirror. 23 September 1956. Retrieved 8 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ^ "TV millions dee a great night of sport". Weekly Dispatch London. 23 September 1956. Retrieved 6 July 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ^ "1956 World Championship". Metal Speedway. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  11. ^ "1956 World Championship". Speedway.org. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Speedway Stars' Test". Weekly Dispatch (London). 1 July 1956. Retrieved 13 January 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  13. ^ "Description". The Fast Lane. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  14. ^ "1956". Speedway.org. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  15. ^ Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5