William Holden (8 March 1923 – 14 March 2011) was a motorcycle speedway rider from England.[1]
 | |
| Born | 8 March 1923 Blackburn, England |
|---|---|
| Died | 14 March 2011 (aged 88) |
| Nationality | British (English) |
| Career history | |
| 1950–1951, 1956–1957 | Southampton Saints |
| 1951–56, 1958 | Poole Pirates |
| Team honours | |
| 1951 | Division 3 champions |
| 1952, 1955 | Division 2 champions |
| 1952, 1955, 1956 | National Trophy (Div 2) |
Career edit
Holden rode for Southampton Saints (1950-1, 1957),[2] Poole Pirates 1951–56, 1958) and England (1952). He won the Division 3 championship with Poole in 1951[3] and the following year won the Division 2 title with Poole. In 1955, he won a third title when Poole won Division 2 again.
He is still regarded by some as one of the best riders ever to don the distinctive blue and white skull and crossbones race jacket. Holden was entered into the Poole Speedway Hall of Fame in 2008 having scored 1,599 points in 639 races.[4]
Personal life edit
He is uncle to former Exeter Falcons, Poole and England rider Kevin Holden and father to former Weymouth junior Paul Holden.[5]
References edit
- ^ "ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
- ^ "Pike suspension still stands". Leicester Evening Mail. 3 August 1950. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "National League Division 3 1951" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- ^ "Hall Of Fame". poole-speedway.com. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- ^ "Bill Holden Poole Pirate". The History Of Poole Speedway. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
 | This biographical article relating to English speedway is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |