Neil Middleditch (born 7 January 1957 in

Wimborne Wimborne Minster (often referred to as Wimborne, ) is a market town in Dorset in South West England, and the name of the Church of England church in that town. It lies at the confluence of the River Stour and the River Allen, north of Poole ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

) is a former

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

rider and the team manager of the

Poole Pirates Poole Pirates (also known as Poole Speedway) are a motorcycle speedway team based in Poole, England, competing in the SGB Championship. The club have been the champions of the United Kingdom on ten occasions. Poole Speedway is promoted by l ...

. His father

Ken Ken or KEN may refer to: Entertainment * ''Ken'' (album), a 2017 album by Canadian indie rock band Destroyer. * ''Ken'' (film), 1964 Japanese film. * ''Ken'' (magazine), a large-format political magazine. * Ken Masters, a main character in ...

was a former rider with the Poole Pirates. He was the team manager of the

Great Britain national speedway team The Great Britain Speedway Team (also known as GB Speedway Team) is one of the major teams in international speedway. The team is managed by former Great Britain riders Oliver Allen and Simon Stead, and captained by the 2018 Speedway World Cham ...

for seven years before resigning in February 2008, a position he has since resumed.

Riding career

Middleditch's riding career spanned from 1973 until 1986, riding for the

Eastbourne Eagles The Eastbourne Eagles were a British speedway team, based at Arlington Stadium, near Eastbourne, England, that raced in the SGB Championship. History Speedway was initially introduced to Eastbourne in 1929. During their first league season th ...

Reading Racers Reading Racers are a British motorcycle speedway team. Formed in 1968, they won four British League titles during their history. The club closed in October 2008 after the lease on Smallmead Stadium was sold and the site was demolished. In 2016 a ...

and 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 1975 Middleditch became British Under-21 Champion and was third in the 1978

European Under-21 Championship The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the compe ...

final. He won the

National League Riders' Championship The National League Riders' Championship is an annual motorcycle speedway contest between the top riders (or two riders) with the highest average points total from each club competing in the third tier league in the United Kingdom. The same form ...

Brandon Stadium Brandon Stadium, also known as Coventry Stadium, is located 6 miles east of Coventry in Brandon, Warwickshire, England. It was the home of the Coventry Bees motorcycle speedway team. It also hosted BriSCA F1 Stock Car Racing on the 1st Satur ...

, held on 10 August 1985.

Management career

Poole Pirates

Middleditch became the Poole Pirates team manager in 1999 and by the end of the 2022 season he had steered the club to a total of 10 league titles, eight of which were in the top flight of British Speedway (2003,2004, 2008, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2018) and claimed back-to-back Championship (second tier) titles in 2021 and 2022. 'Middlos' impressive trophy haul has been augmented by silverware successes in the Craven Shield in both 2001 and 2002 and again in 2006, before winning the same competition again in 2012 and 2014, 2015, 2016 when it was renamed the Elite Shield and then in 2017 and 2018 in the rebranded Premiership Shield. He has Knockout cup victories in 2003, 2004, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2021 and 2022 (the first five in British speedway's top flight, the latter two at Championship level), and also a British League cup title from 2003 to be proud of, a total of 28 trophies in 23 active season's (as the 2020 campaign was cancelled due to Covid-19 restrictions)

Great Britain

Middleditch was appointed as team manager of

Great Britain speedway team The Great Britain Speedway Team (also known as GB Speedway Team) is one of the major teams in international speedway. The team is managed by former Great Britain riders Oliver Allen and Simon Stead, and captained by the 2018 Speedway World Cham ...

in 2001 after the resignations of joint managers

Colin Pratt Colin George Pratt (10 October 1938 – 2 October 2021) was a British motorcycle speedway rider and later promoter of the Coventry Bees who compete in the British Elite League (speedway), Elite League. Racing career Born in Hoddesdon, Hertfords ...

and

Eric Boocock Eric Boocock (born 28 February 1945 in Dewsbury, Yorkshire, England) is a former Speedway rider who appeared in three Speedway World Championship finals. Career Eric Boocock started his career with the Middlesbrough Bears in 1961 and stayed the ...

. In 2004 Great Britain lost out on the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

by a single point with Middleditch at the helm. During the

BSPA The British Speedway Promoters Limited (BSPL) organises the domestic motorcycle speedway competitions in the United Kingdom. They are also responsible for the promotion and running of the FIM meetings staged in Britain. Each club has a promot ...

's 2007 annual general meeting, Middleditch announced that he wanted to continue as the Great Britain manager but recommended that 1992

World Champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

Gary Havelock Robert Gary Havelock (born 4 November 1968, in Eaglescliffe, County Durham, England) is a former speedway rider who was World Champion in 1992. For several years he captained the Redcar Bears in the Premier League. He is the son of former speed ...

should be his successor once he has retired from racing. In February 2008 Middleditch quit his role as the Great Britain manager after seven years in charge to focus on his family business.

References

External links

* https://www.worldspeedwayriders.org/rider/33/neil-middleditch {{DEFAULTSORT:Middleditch, Neil 1957 births Living people British speedway riders English motorcycle racers Lakeside Hammers riders Poole Pirates riders Reading Racers riders Eastbourne Eagles riders Exeter Falcons riders Wolverhampton Wolves riders Oxford Cheetahs riders People from Wimborne Minster Sportspeople from Dorset