As you will have seen from my previous posts, my favourite sport is speedway - to Americans, that is motorcycle speedway. 500cc single cylinder machines with no gears and no brakes, hurtling around shale ovals... One of the most popular spectator sports in Europe, it is a great spectacle, but sometimes, it can prove deadly.
Thirty-nine years ago today, on 20th May, 1976, Sweden's Tommy Jansson lost his life in a track crash during a World Championship meeting on Stockholm. The tragedy really had an impact on me, as Tommy was the top rider in my team, the Wimbledon Dons.
Wimbledon, of course, is just one of several London-based teams to have competed in British league racing over the years, and there are a number of riders from these London teams to have met with a fatal accident while racing. Here is a list of those riders...
Charlie Biddle (Stamford Bridge) - 1928
Charlie Blacklock (Harringay) - 1935
Con Cantwell (Wimbledon) - 1933
Ray Duggan (Harringay) - 1950
Harry Eyre (West Ham) - 1953
Tom Farndon (New Cross) - 1935
Herbert 'Dusty' Haigh (Hackney) - 1936
Vic Harding (Hackney) - 1979
Ian Hunter (Wimbledon) - 1987
David Jackson (New Cross) - 1938
Tommy Jansson (Wimbledon) - 1976
Paul Muchene (Hackney) - 1989
Ernie Roccio (Wimbledon) - 1952
Reg Vigor (Wimbledon) - 1937
Dave Wills (West Ham) - 1965
Nelson 'Bronco' Wilson (Wembley) - 1947
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