1953 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1953 Individual Speedway World Championship was the eighth edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.

Welshman Freddie Williams became the second rider to win a second title in front of a 90,000 attendance at Wembley Stadium. Williams won 4 of his 5 races, only dropping one point in heat 13 to Jeff Lloyd. Geoff Mardon defeated Olle Nygren in the bronze medal ride off.

Qualification

Qualification started on 1952.

Stage 1

Pos.	Rider	Points
Norwegian round 28 September 1952 Norway Lerkendal Stadion, Trondheim First 3 (+1 seeded) to Nordic round 1953 Pos. Rider Points 1 Basse Hveem 14+3 2 Henry Andersen 14+2 3 Reidar Kristoffersen 13 4 Sverre Gjomesli 11 5 Werner Lorentzen 10 6 Thorleif Andreassen 10 7 Erik Storm Larsen 10 8 Rolf Naess 6 9 Oddvan Gundersgaard 5 10 Edvin Fredriksen 5 11 Erling Simonsen 4 12 Odd Johansen 4 13 Magne Flaaten 3 14 Gunnar Hilsen 2 15 Karl Andreassen 1 16 Olgar Torholen 1	Swedish round 20 May 1953 Sweden Eslöv Motorstadion, Eslöv First 8 to Nordic final Pos. Rider Points 1 Stig Pramberg 12 2 Olle Segerström 11 3 Olle Nygren 11 4 Dan Forsberg 10 5 Rune Sörmander 10 6 Sune Karlsson 9 7 Bert Lindarw 8 8 Thorsten Carlsson 8 9 Joel Jansson 8 10 Bertil Carlsson II 7 11 Ove Fundin 6 12 Ove Bodin 4 13 Göte Olsson 4 14 Bernt Nilsson 4 15 Sven Skoglund 3 16 Evert Andersson 3 17 Gunnar Hellqvist 2
1	Basse Hveem	14+3
2	Henry Andersen	14+2
3	Reidar Kristoffersen	13
4	Sverre Gjomesli	11
5	Werner Lorentzen	10
6	Thorleif Andreassen	10
7	Erik Storm Larsen	10
8	Rolf Naess	6
9	Oddvan Gundersgaard	5
10	Edvin Fredriksen	5
11	Erling Simonsen	4
12	Odd Johansen	4
13	Magne Flaaten	3
14	Gunnar Hilsen	2
15	Karl Andreassen	1
16	Olgar Torholen	1
Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Stig Pramberg	12
2	Olle Segerström	11
3	Olle Nygren	11
4	Dan Forsberg	10
5	Rune Sörmander	10
6	Sune Karlsson	9
7	Bert Lindarw	8
8	Thorsten Carlsson	8
9	Joel Jansson	8
10	Bertil Carlsson II	7
11	Ove Fundin	6
12	Ove Bodin	4
13	Göte Olsson	4
14	Bernt Nilsson	4
15	Sven Skoglund	3
16	Evert Andersson	3
17	Gunnar Hellqvist	2

Stage 2

Continental qualifier

17 May 1953
West Germany Altes Stadion Abensberg, Abensberg
First 6 to Continental round

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Austria Josef Kamper	15
2	Sweden Kjell Carlsson	13
3	Austria Fritz Dirtl	12
4	Sweden Sven Skoglund	11
5	Austria Karl Killmeyer	10
6	West Germany Albin Siegl	9
7	Netherlands Tony Kroeze	9
8	West Germany Josef Hofmeister	8
9	England Wilf Plant	5
10	West Germany Fred Aberl	5
11	Netherlands Gerit Jonker	5
12	England Jack Winstanley	5
13	West Germany Karl Kiendl	4
14	Netherlands Co Boef	4
15	Austria Walter Dirtl	3
16	Austria Leopold Killmeyer	2
17	West Germany Alfred Hamberger	1
18	West Germany Hans Müller	0

Nordic Final

31 May 1953
Norway Dælenenga idrettspark, Oslo
First 8 to Continental final

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Sweden Dan Forsberg	15
2	Norway Basse Hveem	14
3	Sweden Olle Nygren	11
4	Sweden Olle Segerström	10
5	Norway Henry Andersen	10
6	Sweden Rune Sörmander	9
7	Sweden Thorsten Carlsson	9
8	Sweden Stig Pramberg	9
9	Sweden Sune Karlsson	7
10	Denmark Leif Bech	7
11	Norway Reidar Kristoffersen	7
12	Sweden Bert Lindarw	5
13	Norway Thorleif Andreasen	3
14	Sweden Joel Jansson	3
15	Finland Kaukko Jousanen	1
16	Finland Simo Ylänen	0
17	Denmark Kiehn Berthelsen	0

Stage 3

Continental Final

21 June 1953
Sweden Kumla Motorstadion, Kumla
First 8 to International Round

Pos.	Rider	Points
1	Norway Basse Hveem	15
2	Sweden Olle Nygren	13
3	Sweden Dan Forsberg	12
4	Sweden Sune Karlsson	12
5	Sweden Rune Sörmander	10
6	Sweden Olle Segerström	9
7	England Phil Clarke	9
8	Sweden Stig Pramberg	8
9	Sweden Thorsten Carlsson	7
10	Norway Henry Andersen	6
11	Austria Karl Killmeyer	6
12	Sweden Kjell Carlsson	4
13	Austria Josef Kamper	3
14	England Bob Roger	3
15	Austria Fritz Dirtl	2
16	Sweden Sven Skoglund	1
17	West Germany Albin Siegl	dnr

British qualifying round

The top riders qualify for the International round.

Date	Venue	Winner
26 May	Banister Court Stadium	Maury Mattingley
26 May	Cornish Stadium	Goog Hoskin
28 May	Oxford Stadium	Jim Boyd
29 May	Pennycross Stadium	Harold Fairhurst
30 May	Rayleigh Weir Stadium	Peter Clark

Stage 4

International round

The top 54 riders qualify for the Championship round.

Date	Venue	Winner
6 July	Stanley Stadium	Tommy Miller
6 July	Wimborne Road	Basse Hveem
7 July	Yarmouth Stadium	Fred Brand
8 July	White City Stadium, Glasgow	Tommy Miller
10 July	Leicester Stadium	Olle Nygren
10 July	The Stadium, Motherwell	Ron Mountford
11 July	Brandon Stadium	Charlie New
11 July	Sun Street Stadium	Brian Crutcher
18 July	Old Meadowbank	Don Cuppleditch
24 July	Monmore Green Stadium	Harry Bastable

Stage 5

Championship Round

Top 16 qualify for World final, 17th-20th reserves for World final

Date	Venue	Winner
14 August	Knowle Stadium	Dick Bradley
15 August	Harringay Stadium	Olle Nygren
17 August	Wimbledon Stadium	Ronnie Moore
18 August	West Ham Stadium	Jack Young
20 August	Wembley Stadium	Jack Biggs
22 August	Hyde Road Stadium	Ronnie Moore
22 August	Odsal Stadium	Arthur Forrest
26 August	Perry Barr Stadium	Graham Warren
28 August	The Firs Stadium	Aub Lawson

Scores

Top 16 qualify for World final, 17th-20th reserves for World final

Pos.	Rider	Total pts
Pos. Rider Total pts 1 New Zealand Ronnie Moore 29 2 Sweden Olle Nygren 28 3 Australia Jack Young 27 4 England Arthur Forrest 26 5 Australia Jack Biggs 25 6 England Dick Bradley 25 7 Wales Freddie Williams 25 8 Australia Aub Lawson 25 9 England Alan Hunt 25 10 England Jeff Lloyd 24 11 England Split Waterman 24 12 Wales Eric Williams 24 13 New Zealand Geoff Mardon 24 14 England Brian Crutcher 23 15 Sweden Rune Sörmander 23 16 Australia Graham Warren 23 17 England Dent Oliver 23 18 Australia Arthur Payne 22 19 England Louis Lawson 21 20 New Zealand Maury Dunn 21 21 England Wally Green 20 22 England Len Williams 20 23 England Ron How 19 24 Australia Ken Walsh 19 25 England Harry Edwards 18 26 England Howdy Byford 18 27 England Don Cuppleditch 17 28 England Billy Hole 17 29 England Tommy Miller 16 30 New Zealand Ron Johnston 16 31 England Bill Kitchen 16 32 Sweden Dan Forsberg 14 33 Australia Dick Seers 14 34 England Fred Brand 14 35 England Eric Boothroyd 14 36 New Zealand Charlie New 13	Pos. Rider Total pts 37 England Bob Fletcher 13 38 England Ken Middleditch 13 39 Australia Peter Moore 12 40 Scotland Bob Mark 11 41 England Jack Parker 11 42 England Ron Clarke 11 43 England Terry Small 11 44 England John Reason 11 45 England Harry Bastable 11 46 England Jim Tolley 11 47 Sweden Olle Segerström 11 48 Sweden Stig Pramberg 11 49 New Zealand Peter Clark 10 50 England Harry Welsh 10 51 Scotland Ken McKinlay 9 52 England Fred Rogers 9 53 New Zealand Les Hewitt 8 54 Sweden Sune Karlsson 8 55 England Reg Reeves 7 56 England Phil Clarke 7 57 England Charlie May 7 58 New Zealand Barry Briggs 6 59 England Geoff Pymar 6 60 England Peter Robinson 6 61 England Malcolm Craven 6 62 New Zealand Trevor Redmond 5.5 63 England Pat Clark 5 64 England Bill Holden 4 65 England Alan Kidd 3 66 England Don Potter 3 67 England Ron Mountford 3 68 Norway Basse Hveem 3 69 New Zealand Dick Campbell 2 70 England Bob Baker 2 71 Scotland Gordon McGregor 2
1	New Zealand Ronnie Moore	29
2	Sweden Olle Nygren	28
3	Australia Jack Young	27
4	England Arthur Forrest	26
5	Australia Jack Biggs	25
6	England Dick Bradley	25
7	Wales Freddie Williams	25
8	Australia Aub Lawson	25
9	England Alan Hunt	25
10	England Jeff Lloyd	24
11	England Split Waterman	24
12	Wales Eric Williams	24
13	New Zealand Geoff Mardon	24
14	England Brian Crutcher	23
15	Sweden Rune Sörmander	23
16	Australia Graham Warren	23
17	England Dent Oliver	23
18	Australia Arthur Payne	22
19	England Louis Lawson	21
20	New Zealand Maury Dunn	21
21	England Wally Green	20
22	England Len Williams	20
23	England Ron How	19
24	Australia Ken Walsh	19
25	England Harry Edwards	18
26	England Howdy Byford	18
27	England Don Cuppleditch	17
28	England Billy Hole	17
29	England Tommy Miller	16
30	New Zealand Ron Johnston	16
31	England Bill Kitchen	16
32	Sweden Dan Forsberg	14
33	Australia Dick Seers	14
34	England Fred Brand	14
35	England Eric Boothroyd	14
36	New Zealand Charlie New	13
Pos.	Rider	Total pts
37	England Bob Fletcher	13
38	England Ken Middleditch	13
39	Australia Peter Moore	12
40	Scotland Bob Mark	11
41	England Jack Parker	11
42	England Ron Clarke	11
43	England Terry Small	11
44	England John Reason	11
45	England Harry Bastable	11
46	England Jim Tolley	11
47	Sweden Olle Segerström	11
48	Sweden Stig Pramberg	11
49	New Zealand Peter Clark	10
50	England Harry Welsh	10
51	Scotland Ken McKinlay	9
52	England Fred Rogers	9
53	New Zealand Les Hewitt	8
54	Sweden Sune Karlsson	8
55	England Reg Reeves	7
56	England Phil Clarke	7
57	England Charlie May	7
58	New Zealand Barry Briggs	6
59	England Geoff Pymar	6
60	England Peter Robinson	6
61	England Malcolm Craven	6
62	New Zealand Trevor Redmond	5.5
63	England Pat Clark	5
64	England Bill Holden	4
65	England Alan Kidd	3
66	England Don Potter	3
67	England Ron Mountford	3
68	Norway Basse Hveem	3
69	New Zealand Dick Campbell	2
70	England Bob Baker	2
71	Scotland Gordon McGregor	2

World final

17 September 1953
England London, Wembley Stadium

Pos.	Rider	Heat Scores	Total
1	Wales Freddie Williams	(3,3,3,2,3)	14
2	England Split Waterman	(3,3,3,3,1)	13
3	New Zealand Geoff Mardon	(3,2,3,1,3)	12+3
4	Sweden Olle Nygren	(2,3,2,3,2)	12+2
5	Australia Jack Young	(3,2,3,2,F)	10
6	New Zealand Ronnie Moore	(F,1,2,3,3)	9
7	England Jeff Lloyd	(2,2,F,3,1)	8
8	England Arthur Forrest	(2,2,0,0,3)	7
9	Australia Aub Lawson	(1,3,2,1,0)	7
10	England Brian Crutcher	(1,1,1,2,1)	6
11	Sweden Rune Sörmander	(0,0,1,2,2)	5
12	Australia Graham Warren	(0,0,2,1,2)	5
13	Wales Eric Williams	(1,1,1,1,F)	4
14	England Alan Hunt	(0,0,1,0,2)	3
15	England Dick Bradley	(2,F,0,0,0)	2
16	Australia Jack Biggs	(1,1,0,0,-)	2
R1	England Dent Oliver	(1)	1
R2	Australia Arthur Payne	did not ride	-

Classification

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos
1	Wales (1) Freddie Williams	14	3				3				3				2				3				14	1
2	England (10) Split Waterman	13			3			3						3			3		1				13	2
3	New Zealand (14) Geoff Mardon	12+3				3		2					3		1							3	12	3
4	Sweden (15) Olle Nygren	12+2				2			3			2						3	2				12	4
5	Australia (5) Jack Young	10		3			2					3					2					-	10	5
6	New Zealand (13) Ronnie Moore	9				-	1							2		3					3		7	6
7	England (12) Jeff Lloyd	9			2					2		-			3						1		2	7
8	England (7) Arthur Forrest	7		2					2					0	0					3			7	8
9	Australia (8) Aub Lawson	7		1						3			2			1			0				7	9
10	England (2) Brian Crutcher	6	1					1				1				2				1			6	10
11	Sweden (4) Rune Sörmander	5	0							0				1				2				2	5	11
12	Australia (6) Graham Warren	5		0				0			2							1			2		5	12
13	Wales (16) Eric Williams	4				1				1	1						1			-			4	13
14	England (9) Alan Hunt	3			0		0						1					0		2			3	14
15	England (3) Dick Bradley	2	2						-				0				0				0		2	15
16	Australia (11) Jack Biggs	2			1				1		0					0						-	2	16
17	England (17) Dent Oliver	1																				1	1	17
18	Australia (18) Arthur Payne	0																					0	18
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside