Andrew Simon Galvin (born 13 November 1965 in Whitstable,

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, United Kingdom) was a

motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...

rider, most notable for his performances in the late 1980s and 1990 when he consistently appeared near the top of the UK National League averages.Oakes, P (1991). ''Complete History of the British League: Speedway''.

Career Summary

Galvin raced for several British league clubs during his career, starting with Crayford Kestrels in 1982, but spent his most successful years with the

Hackney Kestrels The Hackney Kestrels were a Speedway team which operated from 1984, when the Crayford Kestrels transferred the promotion to Hackney, until their closure in 1990. History During their first season in the 1984 National League season the team fi ...

between 1984 and 1990. In 1990, he won the National League Pairs, partnering

Steve Schofield Steve Schofield is a British photographer. He is primarily known for his portraits, especially his narrative portrait style of photography. Some of his photographs of actors, musicians, and writers are included in the London National Portrait G ...

for Hackney, during the

1990 National League season The 1990 National League was the 16th since its establishment as a second tier in 1975, a renamed British League Division Two, and the last before it was again renamed British League Division Two. Summary The league was initially supposed to run ...

. He made one appearance for England in a test match against the USA in 1991. A serious leg injury inflicted in a crash with Australian Scott Humphries at Rye House in 1990 lead to a decline in Galvin's results. Despite this, Galvin returned to the top league of UK speedway with the

Arena Essex Hammers The Lakeside Hammers were a speedway team who most recently raced in the SGB Championship in 2018. They were founded (as the Arena-Essex Hammers) by promoter Wally Mawdsley and stock car promoter Chick Woodroffe. The team were nicknamed the Hamme ...

in 1992 before another accident which left him with serious neck, back and leg injuries saw him advised to retire from the sport by medics. After a break of nearly 10 years, Galvin returned to racing in 2001 but, after failing to recapture his previous form, retired again midway through the 2003 season.Bamford, R (2004). ''Tempus Speedway Yearbook 2004''.

References

British speedway riders 1965 births Living people People from Whitstable Cradley Heathens riders Crayford Kestrels riders Hackney Kestrels riders Ipswich Witches riders Lakeside Hammers riders Reading Racers riders Sheffield Tigers riders Swindon Robins riders Wimbledon Dons riders {{England-speedway-bio-stub