Igor Alexandrovich Plekhanov (Russian: Игорь Александрович Плеханов) (26 July 1933 in Ufa, Russian SFSR – 2 August 2007) was a Soviet speedway rider who finished second in the Speedway World Championship in 1964 and 1965.[1]
 | |
| Born | 26 July 1933 |
|---|---|
| Died | 2 August 2007 (aged 74) |
| Career history | |
| Soviet Union | |
| 1959–1968 | Ufa |
| Individual honours | |
| 1964, 1965 | World Championship silver |
| 1964 | Continental champion |
| 1960, 1961, 1963, 1965, 1968 | Soviet Champion |
| 1960, 1961, 1962 | Russian champion |
History
editPlekhanov was the first Soviet rider to appear in a Speedway World Championship world final during the 1961 Individual Speedway World Championship.[2] He would go on to finish runner-up in the world championship in both 1964[3] and in 1965, when he defeated four times champion Ove Fundin in the silver medal run-off.[4]
Plekhanov was a five-times Soviet Champion in 1960, 1961, 1963, 1965 and 1968[5] Additionally, he won the first three editions of the Russian national championship from 1960 to 1962.[6] In 1964, he was part of the Soviet Union team that toured Britain for the first time.[7] and later that year he reached his third world final; the 1964 Individual Speedway World Championship held on 11 September at the Ullevi in Sweden.[8] He captained the national team the following year in 1965 as part of the Soviet Union national team.[9]
He later coached the Soviet Union national speedway team from 1970 until 1972.
World Final appearances
editIndividual World Championship
edit- 1961 -
Malmö, Malmö Stadion - 13th - 4pts - 1962 -
London, Wembley Stadium - 10th - 7pts - 1964 - Göteborg, Ullevi - 2nd - 13pts
- 1965 - London, Wembley Stadium - 2nd - 13pts
- 1966 - Göteborg, Ullevi - 8th - 8pts
- 1967 - London, Wembley Stadium - 4th - 12pts
- 1968 - Göteborg, Ullevi - Reserve - Did not ride
World Team Cup
edit- 1964 -
Abensberg, Abensberg Stadion (with Boris Samorodov / Gennady Kurilenko / Yuri Chekranov) - 2nd - 25pts (8) - 1965 - Kempten (with Yuri Chekranov / Gennady Kurilenko / Vladimir Sokolov / Viktor Trofimov) - 4th - 7pts (1)
- 1966 -
Wrocław, Olympic Stadium (with Viktor Trofimov / Boris Samorodov / Farid Szajnurov) - 2nd - 25pts (6) - 1967 - Malmö, Malmö Stadion (with Boris Samorodov / Gabdrakhman Kadyrov / Viktor Trofimov / Farid Szajnurov) - 3rd= - 19pts (9)
References
edit- ^ Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
- ^ "World Finals 1936-1994" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
- ^ "Barry Briggs new speedway champion". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 12 September 1964. Retrieved 6 April 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Knutson is Champ". The People. 19 September 1965. Retrieved 6 April 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Individual USRR Championship". Historia Sportu Zuzlowego. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
- ^ "Russian Individual Speedway Championship". Historia Sportu Zuzlowego. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
- ^ "Now it's from Russia with speed". Manchester Evening News. 15 May 1964. Retrieved 5 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Knutsson can beat them all". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 5 September 1964. Retrieved 5 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Igor and Boris lead the Reds". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 15 May 1965. Retrieved 5 September 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
External links
edit- (in Russian) Professor Who Conquered Wembley