Lars Gunnestad (born 18 February 1971 in Drammen, Norway)[1] is a former Norwegian international motorcycle speedway rider.[2] He won the Individual Speedway Norwegian Championship a record ten times and earned 22 caps for the Norway national speedway team.[3]
 | |
| Born | 18 February 1971 Drammen, Norway |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Norwegian |
| Career history | |
| Great Britain | |
| 1991 | Sheffield |
| 1993–1998, 2000–2002 | Poole |
| Poland | |
| 1991–1992 | Zielona Góra |
| 1993 | Bydgoszcz |
| 2000–2001 | Rybnik |
| 2003 | Ostrów |
| Norway | |
| 1991, 1999 | NMK Drammen |
| Sweden | |
| 1987 | Piraterna |
| 1988–2004 | Indianerna |
| 2005 | Valsarna |
| Individual honours | |
| 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003 | Norwegian Champion |
| Team honours | |
| 1990, 1991 | Elitserien Champion |
| 1994 | British League Champion |
| 2002 | Craven Shield Winner |
Family
editHis sons, Lars Daniel Gunnestad and Thomas Gunnestad, were both speedway riders.[4] Lars Daniel won the 2011 Norwegian Championship and Thomas won the 2012 Norwegian Championship.[5]
Career summary
edit
Gunnestad first came to prominence in 1988, when he won his first Norwegian title at the age of 17. His first British club was Sheffield in 1991,[6] who competed in the British League Division Two. Gunnestad missed the British speedway season in 1992 despite signing for Poole Pirates, but returned in 1993 to compete in the British League for Poole Pirates,[7] with whom he would spend this rest of his British career.
Gunnestad became a popular rider at Poole and eventually received a testimonial meeting there in 2001.[8] He appeared in five Speedway Grand Prix meetings as a wild card.
Speedway Grand Prix results
edit| 1995 SGP | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Prix | Pos. | Pts. | Heats | Draw | |
| 1 (1) |  Vojens |
11 | 9 | (1,1,1,2,1) +1C | 13 |
| 1998 SGP | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Prix | Pos. | Pts. | Heats | Draw | |
| 1 (2) | Vojens |
18 | 4 | (0,3,1) | 24 |
| 2 (3) |  Linköping |
24 | 1 | (0,X) | 24 |
| 2002 SGP | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Prix | Pos. | Pts. | Heats | Draw | |
| 1 (4) |  Hamar |
13 | 6 | (3,2)(0,1) | 23 |
| 2003 SGP | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Prix | Pos. | Pts. | Heats | Draw | |
| 1 (5) | Hamar |
18 | 4 | (0,2,1) | 23 |
| permanent speedway rider | |
| wild card, track reserve or qualified reserve | |
| rider not classified (track reserve who did not start) |
World Longtrack Championship
edit- 1994 Semi-final
- 1995 Semi-final
- 1996 -
Herxheim (18th) 3pts
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Oakes, P.(2006). Speedway Star Almanac. ISBN 0-9552376-1-0
- ^ "GUNNESTAD: FOREVER A PIRATE". Poole Speedway. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
- ^ "Ultimate rider index, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
- ^ "Norwegia powalczy o DPŚ" (in Polish). SportoweFakty.pl. 3 November 2009. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
- ^ "Rune Sola mistrzem Norwegii" (in Polish). SportoweFakty.pl. 30 August 2009. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
- ^ "last gamble by Panthers". Peterborough Herald & Post. 6 September 1991. Retrieved 26 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Poole". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 22 March 1993. Retrieved 26 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Robert Bamford, Glynn Shailes (2004). 50 Poole Pirates Greats. Tempus Publishing. pp. 54–55. ISBN 0-7524-3257-5.