Björn Knutson

Björn Knutson[1] commonly spelt Knutsson (born 27 April 1938 in Sweden) is a former motorcycle speedway rider who won the Speedway World Championship in 1965 and was a four-time winner of the World Team Cup.[2] He gained the nickname 'The Crown Prince' for his speedway success.[3]

Björn Knutson
Born27 April 1938 (1938-04-27) (age 85)
Norrköping, Sweden
NationalitySwedish
Career history
Sweden
1957–1966Vargarna
Great Britain
1959–1963Southampton Saints
1964West Ham Hammers
Individual honours
1965World Champion
1962, 1963European Champion
1962, 1964Nordic Champion
1961, 1963Swedish Champion
1965European Long Track Champion
1960, 1962, 1963Pride of the East winner
1964The Laurels
Team honours
1960, 1962, 1963, 1964World Team Cup
1962National League Champion
1961National League KO Cup Winner
1961National Trophy Winner
1960, 1961Allsvenskan Champion
1964Allsvenskan Div 2 Champion

Career

Knutson also won the Speedway Swedish Individual Championship in 1961 and 1963.[4]

He first rode in Great Britain after signing for Southampton Saints, during the 1959 Speedway National League.[5] He topped the team's averages in 1960 and became one of the league's leading riders during the period. He outscored his teammate Barry Briggs at Southampton in both 1962 and 1963 at a time, when Briggs was in the middle of winning his four world championships.[5] He finished his British league career with West Ham Hammers, at the end of the 1964 Speedway National League season.[6]

World Final Appearances

Individual World Championship

World Team Cup

References
  1. "Background". World Speedway Riders. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  2. Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
  3. Montague, Trevor (2004). The A-Z of Sport. Little, Brown. p. 522. ISBN 0-316-72645-1.
  4. Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 85. ISBN 0-86215-017-5.
  5. "Rider averages 1929 to 2009" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  6. "ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
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