A couple of ugly crashes, and consequently injuries to both the hand and ribs, put a stick in the wheel for Anders Thomsen's grandprix dreams in the fall. Still, he ran excellently in the GP Challenge, and was in fact only one sweet point from being the new Danish Grand Prix running in 2020.
By Ib Søby
Even without taking part in the slaughter, the international season ending became something of a thrill for the 25-year-old Fynbo. At this year's last grand prix in Polish Torun, Thomsen stood in the pit and cheered on Slovenian Matej Zagar. Not because Zagar and Anders have a special friendship between them, but because if Zager finished in the top 8 of the overall 2019 rankings, it would trigger a grand prize place for Anders Thomsen.
Unfortunately, it missed out on this combination in Torun, and afterwards Anders Thomsen was "cheated" for the chance as first reserve in 2020, which he had high hopes for. Instead, the international speedway bosses chose to give the reserve seats to German Martin Smolinski, Danish Mikkel Michelsen, Polish Bartosz Smektala, and sent Thomsen down to 4th place, which does not hold many chances for a tour of the big stage in 2020.
It's a tough pill to swallow, but now Anders Thomsen looks ahead, preparing for the qualifying rounds, and of course his league clubs, Stal Gorzow, Västervik, and SES - Southern Jutland Elite Speedway.
The latter implies a spectacular club change from Fjelsted to Vojens.
- It is a bit sad, but there is no room for both me and my good friend Peter Kildemand in Fjelsted. That is why I am moving to Southern Jutland, but of course it also means that Vojens is back on the international calendar. I would like to win, for example, a grand prize or a team World Cup here sometime in the future, Anders Thomsen previously stated.
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Anders Thomsen already started driving the speedway as a 3-year-old. His father, Jan Thomsen, also drove the speedway, promising the boy a 50cc micro racer the day he could ride a bike without a support wheel!
- I quickly learned that, and since then I have worked hard to make my hobby my way of life. Imagine being able to make a living from riding a motorcycle. That's fantastic, says Anders Thomsen.
Both in 50cc and 80cc Anders Thomsen won several Danish championships, both individually and for teams. In 2010, he won the unofficial 80cc World Cup - YGT - at the Vojens Speedway Center. Victory time remains at 500cc, where he became U21 European champion and took the World Cup silver under the same auspices, and later three Danish team championships with Munkebo and Fjelsted.
A little disappointing, together with Michael Jepsen Jensen, he had to settle for Euro silver for couples in North Jutland Brovst in 2018.
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With Swedish legend Tony Rickardsson as the role model, Anders Thomsen gladly acknowledges that he still has something he can do better. He wants to focus even more on the starters in 2020. Get sharper on releasing the clutch in the right split second while ensuring the optimal bite in the rear wheel.
Anders Thomsen lives privately in both Funen and Poland. In his spare time, he enjoys being out in nature and both hunting and fishing.
One of his passions is the British rock band The Queen.
But there are also those who have written and recorded the song that Thomsen, and many other sportsmen, love to hear:
We Are the Champions!
Anders Thomsen
Born:
January 1, 1994 in Odense
Clubs 2020:
SES - Southern Jutland Elite Sport
Stable Gorzow - Poland
Västervik - Sweden
Team:
Chief Mechanic, Norbert Vasko
Mechanic, Gabi Nagy
Manager, Sandra Salman
Team Manager, Martin Christensen
Selected results:
2nd place U21 World Cup, 2015
1st place U21 European Championship, 2015
Nordic Master, 2015
Youth World Champion, 2010
2nd Place Par EM Senior, 2018
3 x Danish Team Champion with Munkebo and Fjelsted.