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An exciting race. love seeing good races like this, no matter who is in it!!!British Speedway at its best with Chris Bomber HarrisWe must point out however that speedway is dangerous, as shown by this clip, also from the 2007 British Grand Prix with Chris Harris and Andreas Jonsson coming together
The Poole Pirates for 2008 are:
(1) BJARNE PEDERSEN(C):
The 2004 Danish Champion returns to Wimborne Road for his 6th season.Pedersen joined Poole in 2002 from Newcastle (Premier League).He is ranked number 12 in the world; the same result he got last year. However halfway in the SGP series he showed constant improvement, and contributed to some high scoring to get Denmark to the Silver medal in this years SWC. He also clinched Poole's only trophy last season; the Elite League Pairs, along with 2006 World Champion Jason Crump.
(2) KAROL ZABIK:
Alongside Chris Holder, Karol Zabik is probably one of the most sought after young riders with his natural ability and exciting potential. Karol already has a world U21 title to his name having claimed the honours in 2006 and Peterborough were quick to realise his class and signed him up in 2006. It wasn't however a 'marriage made in heaven' and was a relatively short-lived arrangement. His availability made him a 'must have' for Poole and was signed at the end of the 2007 campaign.
(3) DAVEY WATT:
One of the first shock signings of the year, local lad Watt returns to his first British Elite League club having been a previous Pirate in 2003 and 2004. Watt first came to the UK in 2001 where he spent time riding at Premier league level for the Isle of Wight. The following year he moved to Newcastle, as Bjarne Pedersen headed south to Dorset, but then gained a team bearth in Poole in 2003 where he averaged 6.01 in Poole's Double winning season. In 2004 he started with the Pirates but an injury at the end of the May ruled him out for a lengthy period, causing his place to be handed to Krzysztof Kasprzak. Watt was given a chance at Eastbourne where he remained until 2006 when he moved to Oxford, but then recalled to the Eagles in 2007. It seemed a certainty that he would continue as an Eagle in 2008 but when the team opted for a British strong-spearhead there was no place for Watt so the Poole promotion changed direction and went for a stronger top two by inviting their asset to ride again for the club.
(4) ADAM SKORNICKI:
Renowned for his long-flowing hair and 'donut' celebrations this flamboyant Polish rider is certain to bring experience to the Poole side in 2008. Adam is best described as a rider with a considerable amount of 'untapped' talent and many expected him to reach the heady heights of a top class international rider when he was first signed by Wolverhampton in 2000. With over 160 appearances for the Midlands club scoring over 1000 points, he has also given service to Arena Essex, Oxford and Belle Vue. Adam rode for Poole as a guest in the Craven Shield final in 2006 where he quickly endeared himself to the Poole fans.
(5) CHRIS HOLDER:
Chris comes to Wimborne Road as one of the most promising riders in world speedway. The Poole club recognised this huge talent and were quick to secure his signature in 2006, although Chris decided that he wanted a further year's Premier League experience and stayed with Isle of Wight last season. It was a sound idea as he enjoyed a highly successful campaign, coming very close to scooping the World U21 championship. He did however win the Premier League Pairs (with Jason Bunyan), the Premier League Fours, has just recently one the Australian National Championship and also made a World Team Cup appearance for his country. Chris knows that there is a lot of expectation on him but the 2005-2007 Australian U21 will take all the pressure in his stride.
(6) ZBIGNIEW SUCHECKI (r):
'Zibi' as he is more familiarly known as came to England last season with Ipswich where he endured something of a roller-coaster British baptism. A rider with immense talent he did well to achieve a 3.65 debut season average. A true-entertainer with his all-out racing style 'Zibi' slots into the Poole team as reserve for the start of 2008 but once he has 'settled' into the groove it would be no surprise to see him push for one of the second-string berths.
(7) FREDDIE ERIKSSON (r):
26 year old Eriksson joins the Pirates on a loan deal and will begin the campaign at reserve with his 3.06 average. Eriksson was performing better than that figure suggests during the 2007 season when riding for the Oxford Elite league side that went out of business midway through the season. His link up with Poole will be his fourth British club since first coming to England in 2001. He began with King's Lynn with whom he had two productive seasons scoring over 400 points in 71 appearances. In 2003 he made 14 appearances late season for Ipswich, on loan from his parent club Oxford, but missed out on a British berth in 2004. Oxford used him for their closing matches of 2005 when he rattled in over 40 points in just 4 meetings. The following season though was far from memorable for Eriksson, 13 matches with Oxford saw him struggle to get amongst the points and he was released in June of that season. Despite this, he could turn out to be he Pirates most surprising steal
THIS IS ANTONIO LINDBACK CHECKING HIS CLUTCH IN THE PITS...NICE AND LOUD .. width="425" height="350" ..
Poole's Roll of Honour:
Elite League Champions: 2003,2004
Elite League Runners up: 1999, 2001
EL Knockout Cup Winners: 2003,2004
British League Cup Winners: 2003
Craven Shield Winners: 2001,2002
Divison One Champions: 1969,1994
Divison Two Champions: 1952,1955,1961,1962,1989,1990
Divison Three Champions: 1951
Southern League Champions: 1962,1963,1964
World Individual Champion:
Mark Loram 2000,
Tony Rickardsson 2001,2002
World U21 Champion: Krzysztof Kasprzak 2005, Lee Richardson 1999.