Philippe Bergé (born 20 June 1971 in

Brive-la-Gaillarde Brive-la-Gaillarde (; Limousin dialect of oc, Briva la Galharda) is a commune of France. It is a sub-prefecture and the largest city of the Corrèze department. It has around 46,000 inhabitants, while the population of the agglomeration was 7 ...

) is a French former

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, who competed in

Grasstrack Motorcycle Grasstrack is a form of track racing which typically, in its current form, takes place on a flat track consisting of two straights and two bends usually constructed in a field. It is one of the oldest types of motorcycle sports in the ...

, Longtrack and

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 ...

. He is a former champion of France.

Speedway career

Bergé came to prominence when he reached the final of the 1993 Individual Long Track World Championship, he then reached a second longtrack final the following year. He began his British league career riding for

Oxford Cheetahs The Oxford Cheetahs are a British speedway teamLawson,K (2018) “Riders, Teams and Stadiums”. based at Oxford Stadium, in Oxford, England. They were founded in 1939 and are five times champions of Britain, in 1964, 1985, 1986, 1989 and ...

during the 1996 Premier League speedway season, he was signed midway through the season but still rode 14 times for the club. In 1996, he became the champion of France and competed in his third world longtrack final at the

1996 Individual Long Track World Championship The 1996 Individual Long Track World Championship was the 26th edition of the FIM speedway Individual Long Track World Championship. The event was held on 8 September 1996 in Herxheim in Germany. The world title was won by Gerd Riss of Germany ...

and had showed enough good form during 1996 to be retained by the Cheetahs for the

1997 Premier League speedway season The 1997 Premier League speedway season was the second division of speedway in the United Kingdom and governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA). Restructure A restructure ...

, where he rode 35 times and averaged above 8 and recorded a maximum score in the second leg of the

Premier League Knockout Cup The Premier League Knockout Cup was a motorcycle speedway Knockout Cup competition in the United Kingdom between 1995 and 2016, governed by the Speedway Control Bureau (SCB). History The teams from the Premier League, the top tier of league raci ...

final. He also finished in 7th place during the 1997 Individual Long Track World Championship. He left Oxford for the

Isle of Wight Islanders The Isle of Wight Wightlink Warriors (formerly Islanders) are a British speedway team. They last competed in the 2019 National Development League and ride their home meetings at the Smallbrook Stadium. History Isle of Wight speedway began at ...

following Oxford's move to the Elite League and also rode a few matches for

Swindon Robins The Swindon Speedway team, also known as the Swindon Robins, are an English motorcycle speedway team established in 1949 that have competed primarily in the top division of speedway league competition in the United Kingdom. They are five times l ...

before switching to

Peterborough Panthers The Peterborough Panthers are a British speedway team based in Peterborough, England. They are three times champions of the United Kingdom, winning the highest level league in 1999, 2006 and 2021. History 1970–1994 The Panthers inaugural sea ...

, who he helped win the

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

and reach the Knockout Cup final. He was also part of the Peterborough four that won the

Premier League Four-Team Championship The Premier League Four-Team Championship was a contest between teams competing in the Premier League in the United Kingdom. Eight teams are grouped into fours, with one rider from each team in each race. The winners and second place of each group ...

, which was held on 30 August 1998, at the

East of England Arena The East of England Showground is a large showground area (667,731sqm) located on East of England Way in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The Showground is owned by Bellway as of around 2019 and the site currently includes the East of Engla ...

. He competed in the

1998 Individual Long Track World Championship The 1998 Individual Long Track/Grasstrack World Championship was the 28th edition of the FIM speedway Individual Long Track World Championship. The world title was won by Kelvin Tatum of England. Venues Final Classification References ...

and reached his third European Grasstrack final in 1999.

Major results

World Individual Longtrack Championship

* 1993 Individual Long Track World Championship 18th, 2pts * 1995 Individual Long Track World Championship 12th, 5pts *

11th, 6pts * 1997 Individual Long Track World Championship 7th, 64pts *

21st, 11pts

Family

His son

Dimitri Bergé Dimitri Bergé (born 5 February 1996) is a French speedway rider. Career International Bergés' major honours include the 2009 125cc Grasstrack and the World 250cc Longtrack Champion 2012. He was World Under-21 finalist in 2016 and 2017 an ...

is also an international speedway rider.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berge, Philippe 1971 births Living people French speedway riders French motorcycle racers Isle of Wight Islanders riders Oxford Cheetahs riders Peterborough Panthers riders Swindon Robins riders Individual Speedway Long Track World Championship riders