1969 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1969 Individual Speedway World Championship was the 24th edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

The final was sponsored by the Sunday Mirror and held at Wembley. Ivan Mauger retained his title and won £1,000 in prize money. Barry Briggs finished second again after beating Sören Sjösten in a run-off for silver.^[7]^[8]

Format changes

The format of the Championship changed again for the 1969 event. This time the Swedish riders were pooled with the Continental and European sections that would provide 10 riders for the World Final, while the British and Commonwealth riders would supply 6 riders for the World Final to be held at Wembley Stadium in London.

First round

Qualification results.^[9]^[10]

Norwegian qualifying

13 October 1968
Kongsberg Idrettsparken, Kongsberg
Top 4 (+2 seeded) to Nordic qualification 1969

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Reidar Eide	15
2	Oyvind S. Berg	14
3	Per Aulie	13
4	Ulf Lovaas	10
5	Einar Egedius	9
6	Odd Fossengen	9
7	Helge Langli	9
8	Jan Terje Gravningen	8
9	Thorbjorn Nygaard	8
10	Svein Kaasa	6
11	Edgar Stangeland	6
12	Sverre Holm	3
13	Kjell P. Skaeveland	3
14	Per H. Hansen	2
15	Kare Heia	2
16	Thorbjorn Olsen	2

Finnish qualifying (top 8)

(2 rounds) 2 Aug & 21 Sep 1968
Eteläpuisto, Tampere & Kärpänen Speedway, Lahti
Top 3 (+seeded riders) to Nordic qualification 1969

Pos.	Rider	Points	Total
1	Matti Olin	8+8	16
2	Reima Lohkovuori	6+4	10
3	Jouko Naskali	0+6	6
4	Esko Koponen	4+2	6
5	Jorma Taipale	3+0	3
6	Kauko Reima	0+3	3
7	Juhani Lappi	2+1	3
8	Olavi Tutunen	1+0	1

Swedish qualification

Top 8 in each heat to Nordic qualification

25 April, Ullevi, Gothenburg
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Ove Fundin	15
2	Bengt Brannefors	14
3	Bengt Larsson	13
4	Bo Josefsson	12
5	Conny Samuelsson	10
6	Hans Hallberg	10
7	Benny Lundström	9
8	Sune Stark	7
9	Nils Ringström	7
10	Börje Melin	6
11	Inge Gustafsson	6
12	Willy Friberg	5
13	Ryno Westergren	3
14	Olle Åhnström	2
15	Reine Södergren	1
16	Sören Backlund	0

27 April, Vetlanda Motorstadion
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Bengt Jansson	15
2	Gunnar Malmqvist	14
3	Bengt Svensson	12
4	Sven-Inge Svensson	11
5	Runo Wedin	11
6	Tommy Johansson	9
7	Bo Magnusson	8
8	Jan Simensen	9
9	Åke Andersson	6
10	Sonny Widergren	6
11	Birger Aniander	5
12	Sixten Carlberg	4
13	Jan Strid	4
14	Lennart Michanek	3
15	Arne Hansson	3
16	Lars Jennefors	1

28 April, Ryavallen, Borås
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Bernt Persson	14
2	Göte Nordin	13
3	Per-Olof Söderman	13
4	Sören Sjösten	10
5	Håkan Karlsson	9
6	Olle Nygren	8
7	Börje Olsson	8
8	Bengt Andersson	8
9	Sigvard Johansson	8
10	Per Sjöholm	7
11	Allan Dahlöf	7
12	Stig Pettersson	4
13	Hans Johansson	4
14	Yngve Nilsson	3
15	Käll Haage	3
16	Lennart Karlsson	1

29 April, Avestavallen, Avesta
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Leif Enecrona	12
2	Hasse Holmqvist	11
3	Anders Michanek	11
4	Leif Larsson	8
5	Sven Sigurd	8
6	Christer Löfqvist	8
7	Per-Åke Gerhardsson	6
8	Therje Henriksson	6
9	Tommy Bergqvist	5
10	Lars Jansson	5
11	Egon Stengarn	4
12	Rolf Karlsson	3
13	Lars Eriksson	2
14	Hans Utterström	2
15	Curt Nyqvist	1
16	Jan Holmqvist	0

Continental qualifying

Top 32 to Continental semi-finals

Date	Venue	Winner	2nd	3rd
11 May	Speedway Stadion, Ruhpolding	Antoni Woryna	Edward Jancarz	Manfred Poschenreider
11 May	Matija Gubec Stadium, Krško	Jerzy Trzeszkowski	Zdislaw Dobrucki	Gennady Kurilenko
11 May	Borsod Volán Stadion, Miskolc	Vladimir Smirnov	Zbigniew Podlecki	Paweł Waloszek
11 May	Paul Greifzu Stadium, Stralsund	Viktor Trofimov	Zygmunt Pytko	Jürgen Hehlert

British/Commonwealth qualifying

Top 32 to British/Commonwealth semi-finals

Date	Venue	Winner	2nd	3rd
17 May	The Shay, Halifax	Eric Boocock	Charlie Monk	Reg Luckhurst
17 May	Cliftonhill, Coatbridge	Jim McMillan	Bert Harkins	Trevor Hedge
19 May	Brough Park, Newcastle	Eric Boocock	Ray Wilson	Dave Gifford
19 May	County Ground Stadium, Exeter	Barry Briggs	Martin Ashby	Tony Clarke
20 May	Leicester Stadium, Leicester	Martin Ashby	Howard Cole	John Boulger
20 May	West Ham Stadium, London	Norman Hunter	Stan Stevens	Ken McKinlay
21 May	Wimborne Road, Poole	Geoff Mudge	Ivan Mauger	Pete Smith
22 May	Oxford Stadium, Oxford	Eddie Reeves	Pete Smith	Mike Broadbanks
22 May	Wimbledon, London	Ronny Moore	Tony Clarke	Ivan Mauger
22 May	Owlerton Stadium, Sheffield	Arnold Haley	Jim Airey	Nigel Boocock
23 May	Somerton Park, Newport	Sándor Lévai	Frank Shuter	Reg Luckhurst
23 May	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Charlie Monk	Barry Briggs	Jim McMillan
23 May	Hackney Wick Stadium, London	Colin Pratt	Garry Middleton	Pete Smith
23 May	Monmore Green, Wolverhampton	Nigel Boocock	James Bond	Norman Hunter
24 May	Hyde Road, Manchester	Ivan Mauger	Ray Wilson	Chris Pusey
24 May	Brandon Stadium, Coventry	Nigel Boocock	Norman Hunter	Coll Cottrell
1 June	King's Lynn Stadium, King's Lynn	Terry Betts	Malcolm Simmons	Martin Ashby
9 June	Dudley Wood Stadium, Dudley	Roy Trigg	Bob Andrews	James Bond
11 June	Abbey Stadium, Swindon	Barry Briggs	Jim Airey	Clive Hitch

Second round

Nordic qualification

1 May, Gamla Speedway Track Visby
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Sören Sjösten	13
2	Bernt Persson	13
3	Hasse Holmqvist	13
4	Bengt Larsson	12
5	Gunnar Malmqvist	12
6	Runo Wedin	10
7	Öyvind S. Berg	10
8	Therje Henriksson	8
9	Christer Löfqvist	8
10	Börje Olsson	5
11	Conny Samuelsson	4
12	Bent Nörregaard-Jensen	4
13	Torbjörn Karlsson	4
14	Svein Kaasa	2
15	Jan Höijvind	1
16	Reima Lohkovuori	0

1 May, Kumla Motorstadion Kumla
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Bengt Jansson	13
2	Per-Olof Söderman	13
3	Jan Simensen	13
4	Nils Ringström	12
5	Reidar Eide	11
6	Anders Michanek	11
7	Bengt Andersson	8
8	Sven Sigurd	8
9	Kurt Bögh	7
10	Hans Hallberg	6
11	Ulf Lövaas	5
12	Sven-Inge Svensson	4
13	Bengt Brannefors	3
14	Esko Koponen	2
15	Godtfred Andreasen	2
16	Helge Langli	1

1 May, Gislaved Motorbana Gislaved
Pos	Rider	Points
1	Ove Fundin	15
2	Göte Nordin	14
3	Ole Olsen	13
4	Bo Josefsson	12
5	Odd Fossengen	11
6	Bengt Svensson	10
7	Benny Lundström	8
8	Tommy Johansson	8
9	Sigvard Johansson	6
10	Sune Stark	6
11	Per-Åke Gerhardsson	4
12	Jens Ring	4
13	Matti Olin	3
14	Per Aulie	2
15	Håkan Karlsson	1
16	Leif Enecrona	0

Continental semi-finals

7 June
Slaný Speedway Stadium, Slaný
Top 8 to Continental final

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Antoni Woryna	13
2	Zbigniew Podlecki	11
3	Andrzej Wyglenda	11
4	Jan Mucha	10
5	Edward Jancarz	10
6	Stanislaw Tkocz	9
7	Pawel Waloszek	9
8	Jan Holub I	9
9	Manfred Poschenreider	8
10	Vladimir Smirnov	7
11	Miloslav Verner	7
12	František Ledecký	7
13	Hans Jürgen Fritz	3
14	Janos Szöke	3
15	Vjatjeslav Baturin	2
16	Antonín Kasper Sr.	1

8 June
Polonia Bydgoszcz Stadium, Bydgoszcz
Top 8 to Continental final

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Jerzy Trzeszkowski	14
2	Henryk Glucklich	13
3	Andrzej Pogorzelski	11
4	Valerij Klementiev	11
5	Gennadij Kurilenko	9
6	Zygmunt Pytko	9
7	Zbigniew Dobrucki	9
8	Karel Průša	9
9	Gerhard Uhlenbrock	7
10	Václav Verner	6
11	Boris Tschechanvitsch	6
12	Jaroslav Volf	5
13	Viktor Trofimov	5
14	Jiří Štancl	4
15	Peter Liebing	2
16	Drago Perko	0

British semi-finals

24 June
Leicester Stadium, Leicester
Top 8 to British final

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Barry Briggs	14
2	Charlie Monk	11
3	Reg Luckhurst	11
4	Jim McMillan	10
5	Trevor Hedge	10
6	Garry Middleton	9
7	Howard Cole	8
8	Norman Hunter	8
9	Ronnie Moore	7
10	Arnie Haley	7
11	James Bond	7
12	Clive Hitch	6
13	Cyril Maidment	5
14	Jim Airey	4
15	Bert Harkins	2
16	Colin Gooddy	1

26 June
Owlerton Stadium, Sheffield
Top 8 to British final

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Ivan Mauger	14
2	Ray Wilson	14
3	Tommy Roper	12
4	Nigel Boocock	11
5	Roy Trigg	11
6	Eric Boocock	11
7	Ken McKinlay	7
8	Colin Pratt	7
9	Martin Ashby	6
10	Geoff Mudge	6
11	Bruce Cribb	6
12	Terry Betts	5
13	Tony Clarke	5
14	Pete Smith	3
15	John Boulger	1
16	Bob Andrews	1

Third round

Nordic Final

4 June 1969
Linköping Motorstadion Ryd, Linköping
First 8 to European Final

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	21
	(1) Torbjörn Harrysson	14	3				3				3				2				3				14	1	3
	(3) Sören Sjösten	14	2						3				3				3				3		14	2	2
	(12) Ove Fundin	14			3					3		3			3						2		14	3	1
4	(14) Reidar Eide	12				3		3					2		1							3	12	4
5	(6) Bernt Persson	10		3				2			2							2			1		10	5
6	(2) Hasse Holmqvist	10	1					1				2				3				3			10	6
7	(4) Bengt Jansson	9	0							2				3				3				1	9	7
8	(11) Per Olof Söderman	9			2				2		1					2						2	9	8
9	(8) Bo Josefsson	6		2						1			1			0			2				6	9	3
10	(13) Gunnar Malmqvist	6				1	2							2		1					0		6	10	2
11	(10) Bengt Larsson	5			1			0						1			2		1				5	11
12	(7) Jan Simensen	2		0					1					0	0					1			2	12
13	(16) Ole Olsen	2				2				0	-						0			-			2	13
14	(5) Odd Fossengen	2		0			0					1					1					0	2	14
15	(9) Göte Nordin	1			0		1						0					-		-			1	15
16	(15) Nils Ringstrom	0				0			0			0						0	0				0	16
R1	(R1) Runo Wedin	3																1		2			3	R1
R2	(R2) Bengt Svensson	0									0									0			0	R2
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	21

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

Continental Final

27 June 1969
Stroitel Stadion, Ufa
First 8 to European Final plus 1 reserve

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	21
	(7) Antoni Woryna	11		2					3					1	2					3			11	1
	(16) Andrzej Wyglenda	10				0				3	3						2			2			10	2
	(2) Edward Jancarz	10	3					2				3				2				0			10	3
4	(14) Valeri Klementiev	9				3		E					0		3							3	9	4
5	(1) Henryk Glucklich	9	0				3				2				1				3				9	5
6	(9) Zbigniew Podlecki	9			3		2						3					0		1			9	6
7	(6) Jan Mucha	9		1				3			1							1			3		9	7
8	(13) Andrzej Pogorzelski	9				2	0							2		3					2		9	8
9	(8) Gennady Kurilenko	9		3						2			2			1			1				9	9
10	(4) Jerzy Trzeszkowski	9	2							1				3				2				1	9	10
11	(5) Stanisław Tkocz	8		E			1					2					3					2	8	11
12	(15) Jan Holub I	8				1			1			1						3	2				8	12
13	(3) Paweł Waloszek	6	1						2				1				1				1		6	13
14	(10) Zygmunt Pytko	3			2			1						E			0		E				3	14
15	(12) Zdislaw Dobrucki	0			F					0		E			E						E		0	15
16	(11) Karel Prusa	0			E				0		E					-						-	0	16
R1	(R1) Gerhard Ulenbrock	0														0						0	0	R1
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	21

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

Fourth round

British/Commonwealth Final

5 August 1969
West Ham Stadium, London
First 6 to World Final plus 1 reserve

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	21
	(9) Barry Briggs	15			3		3						3					3		3			15	1
	(3) Nigel Boocock	13	3						3				2				3				2		13	2	3
	(6) Ronnie Moore	13		3				2			3							2			3		13	3	2
4	(2) Ivan Mauger	11	0					3				3				3				2			11	4
5	(4) Ken McKinlay	11	2							3				2				1				3	11	5
6	(11) Howard Cole	9			2				1		2					2						2	9	6
7	(16) Arnold Haley	8				3				2	1						2			X			8	7	3
8	(7) Eric Boocock	8		1					2					1	3					1			8	8	2
9	(13) Garry Middleton	8				2	2							3		1					T		8	9	1
10	(10) Charlie Monk	6			1			1						0			1		3				6	10
11	(8) Martin Ashby	4		0						1			1			X			2				4	11
12	(5) Trevor Hedge	4		2			1					1					0					0	4	12
13	(14) Jim McMillan	4				1		0					0		2							1	4	13
14	(15) Colin Pratt	3				E			T			2						0	1				3	14
15	(1) Ray Wilson	3	1				F				1				1				0				3	15
16	(12) Roy Trigg	1			0					E		0			0						1		1	16
R1	(R1) James Bond	0							0														0	R1
R2	(R2) Clive Hitch	0																					0	R2
R3	(R3) Martin Ashby	0																					0	R3
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	21

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

European Final

24 August 1969
Olching Speedwaybahn, Olching
First 10 to World Final plus 1 reserve

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	21
	(13) Valeri Klementiev	12				0	3							3		3					3		12	1
	(15) Edward Jancarz	12				2			3			3						2	2				12	2
	(2) Torbjörn Harrysson	11	3					3				2				2				1			11	3
4	(4) Andrzej Pogorzelski	11	1							3				2				3				2	11	4
5	(5) Andrzej Wyglenda	9		3			1					1					1					3	9	5
6	(3) Sören Sjösten	9	2						0				3				2				2		9	6
7	(16) Henryk Glucklich	8				1				0	1						3			3			8	7
8	(6) Hasse Holmqvist	8		2				2			3							1			0		8	8
9	(7) Ove Fundin	8		1					1					1	3					2			8	9
10	(8) Jan Mucha	8		0						2			2			1			3				8	10
11	(14) Zbigniew Podlecki	7				3		1					1		1							1	7	11
12	(11) Bengt Jansson	5			3				2		0					0						0	5	12
13	(1) Antoni Woryna	5	0				2				2				0				1				5	13
14	(12) Bernt Persson	5			1					1		0			2						1		5	14
15	(10) Reidar Eide	2			2			0						0			0		0				2	15
16	(9) Per Olof Söderman	0			0		0						0					0		0			0	16
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	21

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

World Final

13 September 1969
Wembley Stadium, London^[11]

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	21
	(11) Ivan Mauger	14			3				3		3					3						2	14	1
	(16) Barry Briggs	11				3				2	2						1			3			11	2	3
	(5) Sören Sjösten	11		3			F					2					3					3	11	3	2
4	(2) Nigel Boocock	10	3					2				3				1				1			10	4
5	(9) Hasse Holmqvist	10			2		1						3					2		2			10	5
6	(6) Edward Jancarz	9		1				1			1							3			3		9	6
7	(7) Ove Fundin	9		2					2					2	3					0			9	7
8	(13) Ken McKinlay	7				1	3							3		0					0		7	8
9	(14) Andrzej Pogorzelski	7				0		3					1		2							1	7	9
10	(3) Jan Mucha	7	1						0				2				2				2		7	10
11	(15) Ronnie Moore	6				2			1			1						1	1				6	11
12	(8) Henryk Glücklich	5		0						0			0			2			3				5	12
13	(12) Valeri Klementiev	4			0					3		X			F						1		4	13
14	(1) Torbjörn Harrysson	4	2				2				F				-				-				4	14
15	(4) Andrzej Wyglenda	2	0							1				1				0				0	2	15
16	(10) Howard Cole	1			1			0						0			0		0				1	16
R1	(R1) Zbigniew Podlecki	3													1				2				3	R1
R2	(R2) Arnold Haley	0																					0	R2
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	21

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

↑ Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. pp. 20–21. ISBN 0-86215-017-5.
↑ "World Championship 1936-1994". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
↑ "WORLD FINALS 1936-1994" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
↑ "HISTORY SPEEDWAY and LONGTRACK". Speedway.org. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
↑ "Speedway riders, history and results". wwosbackup. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
↑ "WORLD INDIVIDUAL FINAL – RIDER INDEX". British Speedway. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
↑ "Briggs once again". Sunday Mirror. 7 September 1969. Retrieved 9 July 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
↑ "Mauger Still King". Sunday Mirror. 14 September 1969. Retrieved 9 July 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
↑ "1969 World Championship". Metal Speedway. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
↑ "1969 World Championship". Speedway.org. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
↑ Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5

[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 9 July 2021.

[3] "WORLD FINALS 1936-1994" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 9 July 2021.

[4] "HISTORY SPEEDWAY and LONGTRACK". Speedway.org. Retrieved 9 July 2021.

[5] "Speedway riders, history and results". wwosbackup. Retrieved 9 July 2021.

[6] "WORLD INDIVIDUAL FINAL – RIDER INDEX". British Speedway. Retrieved 9 July 2021.

[7] "Briggs once again". Sunday Mirror. 7 September 1969. Retrieved 9 July 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.

[8] "Mauger Still King". Sunday Mirror. 14 September 1969. Retrieved 9 July 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.

[9] "1969 World Championship". Metal Speedway. Retrieved 20 January 2024.

[10] "1969 World Championship". Speedway.org. Retrieved 20 January 2024.

[11] Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5

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v t e Individual Speedway World Championship and Speedway Grand Prix seasons
Speedway World Championship	1936 1937 1938 1939 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994
Speedway Grand Prix (SGP)	1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
See also	Medalists Medal Classification Grands Prix SGP riders Super Prix SGP Statistics