Kevin Wölbert

German motorcycle speedway rider

Kevin Wölbert (born 14 June 1989)^[1] is a German motorcycle speedway rider who has won the Individual German Championship title three times.^[2][3][4]

Career history

When Max Dilger was injured, Wölbert was nominated as second track reserve at the 2008 German Grand Prix.^[5] But, after re-staged this event in Bydgoszcz, Poland (as the Final Grand Prix), Wölbert was replaced by Pole Grzegorz Zengota.^[6]

Due to having Polish roots through his grandmother, Wölbert expressed interest in Polish citizenship. He applied for citizenship in November 2009 in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Office in Bydgoszcz. His application was supported by Robert Malinowski, the President of Grudziądz and GTŻ Grudziądz, his Polish team.^[7]

He started racing in the British leagues during the 2009 Premier League speedway season, when riding for the Edinburgh Monarchs. He made an immediate impression, averaging 8.87 and then 8.53 and 8.82 over the next two seasons with the Scottish club.^[8] In 2012, he joined King's Lynn Stars and spent the 2013 season with the Belle Vue Aces.^[4]

In 2014, he joined Glasgow Tigers before re-joining his first British club Edinburgh in 2015. He was part of the Edinburgh team that won the 2015 league title and Premier League Four-Team Championship, although he only rode in the semi finals and not the final.^[9]

His final season in Britain was in 2016, although he did continue to ride in Poland and Denmark. In 2023, he was part of the German team that competed at the 2023 Speedway World Cup in Poland^[10] and he also won his third Germany national title.^[11]

Major Results

World Team Championship

• 2008 - 2nd in Qualifying Round One (8 pts)

Individual U-21 World Championship

• 2007 - Ostrów Wlkp. - 16th place (1 pt)
• 2008 - 12th place in Qualifying Round Two
• 2009 - 15th place in Semi-Final Two

Team U-21 World Championship

• 2006 - Rybnik - 4th place (6 pts)
• 2007 - Abensberg - 4th place (3 pts)
• 2008 - 3rd place in the Qualifying Round Two
• 2009 - 2nd place in the Qualifying Round One
• 2010 - 3rd place in the Qualifying Round Two

European Championships

Individual European Championship

• 2008 7th place in Semi-Final One

Individual U-19 European Championship

• 2005 - Mšeno - 8th place (9 pts)
• 2006 - Goričan - 10th place (6 pts)
• 2007 - Częstochowa - 8th place (8 pts)
• 2008 - Stralsund - 6th place (9 pts)

European Pairs Championship

• 2006 - Lendava - 7th place (3 pts)
• 2008 - Natschbach-Loipersbach - 7th place (1 pt)

Team U-19 European Championship

• 2008 - Rawicz - Runner-up (12 pts)

Domestic competitions

Individual German Championship

• 2008 - German Champion
• 2011 - German Champion
• 2023 - German Champion

See also

• Germany national speedway team (U21, U19)

References

1. Świat Żużla, No 1 (77) 2009, pages 42-43, ISSN 1429-3285
2. "Rok juniorów - podsumowanie sezonu w Niemczech" (in Polish). SportoweFakty.pl. 25 December 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
3. "Wölbert, Kevin". Polish Speedway Database. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
4. "ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
5. "Zmiana rezerwowego" (in Polish). SportoweFakty.pl. 19 September 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
6. "Janowski i Zengota w Final Grand Prix" (in Polish). SportoweFakty.pl. 14 October 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
7. "Kevin Woelbert chce być Polakiem!" (in Polish). SportoweFakty.pl. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
8. "Kevin Wolbert". WWOS Backup. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
9. "FOURS CHAMPIONS". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
10. "WELCOME TO SWC". FIM. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
11. "Speedway - There were no strong opponents for Wölbert! Championship without stars". Speedway News. Retrieved 17 March 2024.