Michael Lee (speedway rider)

Michael Lee
Personal information
Nationality	England
Date of birth	December 11, 1958 (1958-12-11) (age 52)
Place of birth	Cambridge, England
Current club information
Career status	Retired
Career history
Boston Barracudas King's Lynn Stars Poole Pirates	1975 1975-1982, 1985-1986, 1991 1983-1984
Individual honours
British Champion World Champion Long Track World Champion	1977, 1978 1980 1981
Team honours
World Team Cup Winner	1977, 1980

Michael Andrew Lee (born 11 December 1958 in Cambridge, England) is a former international speedway rider who won the Speedway World Championship in 1980.^[1] A controversial character, he was banned for allegedly endangering other riders in the early eighties.

Career

Lee began his professional speedway career in 1975 with Boston in the second division of speedway in the United Kingdom, the National League. In his first season he recorded an impressive average points score of 9.13, he also rode part-time for top division team King's Lynn.^[2]

In 1976, Lee moved full time to British League team King's Lynn and finished the season with an average of 9.22, he was also the British Junior Champion that year.

At the end of the 1977 season, Lee had become the top scorer in the British League with an average of 10.64. He also won the first of his two British Speedway Championship titles. Lee won the World Team Cup with England and he had also made his first appearance in a World Championship Final.^[3]

In 1979, Lee finished 3rd in the World Finals, beating Kelly Moran, Billy Sanders and Ole Olsen in a run-off race to claim the bronze medal. The next year, Lee won the World Championship in Gothenburg for the only time, finishing ahead of King's Lynn team mate Dave Jessup. He was also triumphant again with England in the World Team Cup.^[3]

Lee opted for a change in clubs in 1983 and move to the Poole Pirates. He had another successful year, finishing with and average of 10.43. At the start of the 1984 season Lee was involved in an incident that would result in him being banned from speedway for a year. In a cup match against former club King's Lynn, Lee was excluded mid-race for a starting offence in heat 5 and returned to the pits in the wrong direction, allegedly causing the other riders to take evasive action. Despite the three other riders and the home promoter giving evidence that he had posed no danger the Speedway Control Board fined him and banned him for 5 years, although this was later reduced on appeal.^[2] Many people at the time, including Lee himself, felt that the incident had been used as a pretext to force him out of the sport.

After his ban ended, Lee returned to King's Lynn for two seasons but he was given another fine after he didn't show up to a match in June 1986 and he seemingly quit the sport. He made a short come-back in 1991 with King's Lynn.

Lee was convicted of growing cannabis for his own use in 2007 but avoided a jail term.^[4]

World Final Appearances

• 1977 - Gothenburg, Ullevi - 4th - 12pts + 2pts
• 1978 - London, Wembley Stadium - 7th - 9pts
• 1979 - Chorzów, Silesian Stadium - 3rd - 11pts +3pts
• 1980 - Gothenburg, Ullevi - Winner - 14pts
• 1981 - London, Wembley Stadium - 10th - 5pts
• 1983 - Norden, Motodrom Halbemond - 3rd - 11pts

References

1. ^ Oakes, P.(2004). British Speedway Who's Who. ISBN 0-948882-81-6
2. ^ ^{a b} Bamford, Robert; Shailes, Glynn (2004). 50 Poole Pirates Greats. Tempus Publishing. pp. 73–75. ISBN 0-7524-3257-5. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
4. ^ "Drugs downfall of speedway superstar". Eastern Daily Press. 2007-11-16. http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/news/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=News&tBrand=edponline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED16%20Nov%202007%2008%3A46%3A04%3A680. Retrieved 2008-09-23. 

Persondata
Name	Lee, Michael
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1958-12-11
Place of birth	Cambridge, England
Date of death
Place of death