We can’t host speedway behind closed doors

Speedway

Kent Kings co-promoter Len Silver says racing without fans is a non-starter.

The coronavirus crisis has put Speedway on hold, like the rest of sport in the country, but authorities say they are “100% committed to staging racing this year.”

But Silver – a former team manager for the England and Great Britain’s national sides – admits they would struggle to race again this year unless crowds are able to attend.

“When it can actually restart is a matter of huge debate,” he said.

“We couldn’t possibly run speedway behind closed doors, as they say, it couldn’t happen. Speedway is financed through people coming in the turnstiles, it isn’t financed by television and sponsorship. “Until it is safe to do that then it is not going to happen. Will it be the autumn? I don’t know. “I think realistically we are looking at next year. I would like to think that we could get a few odd meetings at the tail end of the year but that is going to give us problems. “I can’t see our more elderly fans wanting to come to the stadium. They are all as frightened, as I am. I don’t want to go out. I am one of the vulnerable group and all the people like me who would normally go to speedway without a care in the world, they are all going to be thinking, ‘should I go and sit in the stadium?’ I don’t think so. We are looking at reduced audiences at best.”

The Kings were gearing up for a big year – they even have a new mascot which they have just christened Roary – after being promoted into speedway’s second tier for the first time in their history. Silver said: “It was going to be a massive year. New league, new riders, new era, first time in the professional leagues, we were looking forward to it massively.

“But there it is, nobody could forecast what has happened and nobody can forecast what will happen.”

The speedway season should have started last month and Silver knows the battle to overcome the current coronavirus crisis is every bit as challenging as the one to defeat the enemy three quarters of a century ago. Silver sees parallels with fighting Covid-19 and the Second World War, which he saw close up, having lived through the blitz in the east end of London.

He said: “This is not that dissimilar is it? The only thing different now is that it is an unseen enemy. We don’t know where it is.

“It is like the war in some respects but this enemy that we have got is totally unique.”

Roary the Lion is the new Kent Kings mascot