Harry Whitfield (born c.1909) was a British motorcycle speedway rider who went on to manage Middlesbrough Bears. Originally from

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

, Whitfield was one of the top British riders of the early 1930s, riding for Wembley Lions and also for the England national team, competing in the Test series against Australia in 1931.Morgan, Tom (1947) ''The People Speedway Guide'', Odhams Press, p. 73, 83 He was one of the first British riders to challenge the dominance of Australian riders. He was also one of the first riders recognised as developing team riding (where both riders attempt to hold the front of the race together), forming a successful partnershp with George Greenwood. He won the Scottish Championship in 1930 and the (unofficial) World Championship Final at the Sydney Showground Speedway in Australia on 4 March 1933. Whitfield had earlier won the first qualifying round for the 1933 Final at the Claremont Speedway in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, Western Australia on 3 December 1932. All four qualifying rounds were held in Australia. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, while serving with the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

in North Africa, he created makeshift tracks in the desert with petrol tins as crash barriers and organised racing with dispatch riders. This led to meetings being held in the Trani Stadium, in South-Eastern Italy in 1944 and 1945. After the war, Whitfield became manager of the Middlesbrough Bears, leading them to the Northern League title in 1946.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitfield, Harry British speedway riders English motorcycle racers Wembley Lions riders Harringay Racers riders Sheffield Tigers riders 1900s births Year of death missing