Speedway ace out of luck

The 13-year-old suffered a broken engine in the first round and then had to be taken to hospital for examination on internal injuries after crashing in the second.

Fortunately he was soon discharged and has the added comfort of being informed that he is now considered a full time member of the British squad. Lewis wasn't the only rider left licking his wounds as the meeting had to be prematurely halted after several accidents resulted in a shortage of ambulance and medical cover.

Despite being on the track for only a brief period of time, Lewis was quick to make an impact. Riding a GM bike, loaned to him for the second race because of the earlier engine failure on his Tech One-sponsored Jawa, he flew out of the blocks and led into the first corner. With all four riders - his British team-mate and the two German riders - bunched tightly together, Lewis received a slight nudge from a fellow competitor which threw him off his bike resulting in a heavy landing and nasty bruising.

All this came after he was promoted into the squad just two days before the event. Coach Colin Ackroyd of the Eastbourne Eagles received a telephone call from British team managers Louis Carr and Michael Lee asking if Lewis would be available for the meeting on Saturday.

He originally caught the selectors' eye at a Speedway Great Britain training session at the same venue in April when he showed sufficient promise to be invited to travel with the under-16 team to Germany for an International Three Series match as a non-riding reserve.