FIM Team Ice Speedway Gladiators WC - Can the Russians be toppled?

2012-02-23 23:05
Teams have been declared for the 2012 Team Final this weekend at the Anatoly Stepanov Stadium in
Togliatti. The Russian hosts and current champions will be expected to win again and they include the three
riders currently leading this year’s individual championship. They have been dominant in this competition
since its inception in 1979 and most of the discussion now concerns which teams will provide them with the
hardest opposition.

Austria was a surprise runner-up in last year’s Final where they came within 9 points of the winners. Their
hero then was Franz Zorn who scored 31 of their points and they will be hoping to see him back to his best
form after a disappointing start in the FIM Ice Speedway Gladiators Individual World Championship to date.
After the Moscow round he returned home to work on his motors and looked to be in good shape when he
rode in the Czech Republic last weekend. Harald Simon should provide good support.

The Czech Republic Team are at full strength with Antonin Klatovsky now recovered from the injury which
has kept him out of many of the major races so far this season. Both he and younger brother Jan were in
action in the first round of the Czech Open Championship last Saturday with Jan in first place and Antonin
third. However we have to ask whether there may be some significance in the fact that Austria’s Franz Zorn
was second.

The Swedish team have not enjoyed success in this competition for some time but name veteran Per Olov
Serenius at Reserve. ‘Posa’ who was FIM Individual World Champion in 2002 also lead the Swedish team to
victory over the Russians in the same year. He is still one of the best in Scandinavia and if Stefan Svensson’s
recent eye injury restricts his performance ‘Posa’ could prove to be a trump card. Robert Henderson
completes the trio.

At the top of the Finland squad is Antti Akko the 32 year old carpenter from Oulu in the north of the country
who followed his father Erkki into ice racing. Currently the top Finn he missed last year’s final and will be
looking for some high scores along with partner Mats Järf to lift Finland into a rostrum place.

Germany will be relying on Günther Bauer to return to the form which brought him a second place in the
2003 World Championship but with Max Neidermaier struggling in the current series and Stefan Pletschacher
a non qualifier they have a mountain to climb. Similarly, The Netherlands suffer from a lack of top level
riders despite the popularity and tradition of the sport in Holland and particularly Assen. René Stellingwerf
and Gerrit Oege Schukken a relative newcomer will be their representatives on a Togliatti track which
Schukken rates as one of his favourites.

Once again the meeting will be followed live on FIM-TV with TAG Heuer providing results and times
throughout. Racing starts at 19.00 (local time) on Saturday and 15.00 on Sunday afternoon. FIM Jury
President will be Petr Ondrasik from Czech Republic and Referee Marek Wojaczek, Poland.
Can the Russians be toppled from their champion’s perch? Well, stranger things may have happened in sport
and by late on Sunday afternoon we shall know the answer!

Source: FIM

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