The 2023 ICSF World Cycle Speedway Championships is currently taking place in Adelaide, Australia, with 38 British riders tearing up the track between 17 November and 3 December. Follow this page to find out the latest results and updates!

Having been disrupted by Covid-19, this is the first championships to be held since the 2019 edition in Poland. Find our full preview of the event here.

Individual Championships 

Gavin Wheeler was crowned the over 40’s world champion on the same track that he was crowned world junior champion in 1997. Wheeler dropped only one point to Poland’s Pawel Kozlowski to take the overall title.

Kenzie Bennett was the second British world champion of the tour as he amassed 18 out of a possible 20 points, and only dropped points coming in his first ride. Leon Penketh secured second place after he tied with Pawel Szkludarek and Blake Frencken on 16 points, and was faced with a run-off for second and third place.

Maddie Saunders came in second place in the under-19 women’s individual final after a fantastic display of strength. Saunders gained three points in her opening match, before gaining four full points in each match after – but it was a point that cost her the title with Zuzia Klett claiming the world title with a 20-point maximum score. Australian rider Hannah Williams rounded off the podium after a run-off with Birmingham’s Rebekah Humphries for third after both scored 17 points.

Southampton’s Leon Penketh secured second place in the Under-16 boy’s individual final and was also just one point behind Paweł Szkudlarek on 18 points. Lewis Foxley (Hull) finished in second in the under-21 category also just one point behind on 17 points. Steve Harris (Astley and Tyldesley) won the silver in the grand veteran’s final, after a close run-off for gold against Paul White.

Rebekah Humphries led the women’s final after three races, followed by defending champion Lucy Millikin and Zuzanna Klett. European Champion Fryderika Wojciechowska was on eight points after an exclusion in her third race. Humphries finished third in her fourth ride and won her last race to guarantee herself a place on the podium. It was Klett who won heat 20 from Millikin meaning they had to go into a run-off for the top three positions along with Humphries, who went on to secure third place.

Nataleigh Goulden came third in the under-16 girl’s world championship final on 18 points.

World Cup

In the women's World Cup, Maddie Saunders, Nataleigh Goulden, Lizzie Rigley, Rebekah Humphries and Samantha-Jayne Marsh finished just behind Australia after a fantastic battle. The British squad started strongly and were tied with Australia on 20 points by the sixth match. The women continued to chase hard, but were unable to catch up in the second half of the competition, finishing on 40 points just two points behind the hosts.

The senior men came in third in their World Cup match behind Australia and Poland, beating Ireland in the process. Great Britain's team of Josh Brooke, Paul Heard, Chris Timms, Lewis Foxley and Torsten Jolly scored 57 points overall, finishing just one point behind Poland.
In the junior boys race, Great Britain finished second behind hosts Australia. Kenzie Bennett, JJ Wildman, Fez Langoo, Leon Penketh and Lewis Foxley were just a step behind the Aussies, but rode commendably well to beat Poland.

The veteran men also finished second behind Poland, with Jason Ashford, Steve Harris, Gavin Wheeler, Craig Marchant and Andy Yard claiming a total of 57 points. Poland came first on a storming 70 points, while Australia finished third.

World Pairs

England’s Torsten Jolly, Kenzie Bennett and JJ Wildman took the win in the junior world pairs with 42 points ahead of Australia on 40 and Poland on 37.

The women’s event was dominated by Poland, with Great Britain’s Rebekah Humphries, Lizzie Rigley and Nataleigh Goulden taking second six points behind on 40 points.

Andy Yard, Steve Harris and Craig Marchant finished third in the over 40’s world pairs event, with Poland taking the overall win.

In the senior event, Paul Heard, Chris Timms and Josh Brooke finished third for England, five points behind winning Poland, while Welsh riders Ben Mould and Dave Murphy came in fifth.

Federation Cup

The British junior boys won the Federation Cup on the opening day of competition on Saturday 19 November. Kenzie Bennett (Poole), JJ Wildman (Exeter), Lewis Foxley (Hull), James Porter (Ipswich), Leon Penketh (Southampton), Fez Langoo (Poole), Sonny Whale (Southampton) had a brilliant win, scoring a total of 91 points to take the win over Australia and Poland.

In the women's equivalent, Rebekah Humphries (Birmingam) and Nataleigh Goulden (Poole) spearheaded the British squad, gaining 10 and 12 points each, and their team with Lizzie Rigley (Leicester) and Samantha-Jayne Marsh (Coventry) saw them finish second overall on 39 points behind the hosts, Australia.

The British veterans of Craig Marchant (Great Blakenham), Steve Harris (Astley and Tyldesley), Gavin Wheeler (Southampton), Andy Yard (Exeter) and Patrick Wenn (Norwich) had a brilliant battle against their Australian and Polish rivals to gain 32 points.

Test Matches

The Great Britain juniors clinched the Test Series overall win against Australia at Salisbury. It was an action-packed meeting, with the teams drawing 44-44 at the halfway point, but Great Britain proved too strong for a battling Australia with a 94-83 win.

Coming off their win over Australia in the Federation Cup, Great Britain continued their winning form with in their opening test match on Monday 20 November. In the third heat, Leon Penketh's (Southampton) controversial move ramming from outside saw him excluded. At the halfway mark, there were just two points dividing Australia and Great Britain. Leading into the 14th heat, Great Britain were up by one point, but an exclusion from Kenzie Bennett (Poole) saw Australia take maximum points, finishing overall on 89 points ahead of the British on 85. They continued the momentum to take the overall win in their second test match on Sunday 26 November.

The opening match for the senior men saw Great Britain take on Poland. Fast tactical racing saw a brilliant battle between the two nations. The exclusion of Poland’s Jakub Sawinski at the gate gave Great Britain a chance to cut the margin, but in the restart Arek Szymanski managed to gain maximum points and keep ahead by just one point, taking them five points ahead at the halfway point. A tense second half saw the overall lead tussle between Poland and Britain, with Great Britain finishing on 84 points behind Poland.

In the women's first match, the team had a tough ask against Australia, particularly with Maddie Saunders (Poole) absence, but will look forward to her joining later in the tour. Lizzie Rigley (Leicester) put on a fantastic show to claim 18 points, with Nataleigh Goulden (Poole), Rebekah Humphries (Birmingham) and Samantha-Jayne Marsh (Coventry) also providing great entertainment, but were unable to overcome the strong home team.

The veteran men showed fierce competitiveness in their opening two test matches against Australia, but were unable to overcome the host nation. Jason Ashford (Great Blakenham) was a welcome addition in the second test battle, and delivered a close match in the opening five heats, before Ashford was excluded in the sixth heat. Patrick Wenn (Norwich) fought with everything he had throughout the competition, and Gavin Wheeler (Southampton) demonstrated inspirational skill on the track. Captain Craig Marchant (Great Blakenham) had a fantastic showing for the team, collecting a total of 16 points, but the Australians were the stronger team to be victorious once again.