Ian Thomas (1942 – 16 February 2011), was a

motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four clockwise, anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that ...

promoter and team manager, who managed the

England national speedway team The Great Britain national speedway team (formerly the England speedway team) is one of the major teams in international motorcycle speedway. The team is managed by former Great Britain riders Oliver Allen and Simon Stead, and captained by th ...

during 1980.

Biography

Thomas was born in

Ilkley Ilkley is a spa town and civil parish in the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, in Northern England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Ilkley civil parish includes the adjacent village of Ben Rhydding and is a ward within ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

and left school aged 15. After failing to become a professional speedway rider he took up various jobs before finding his way into the promotion of speedway. Thomas and his business partner Jeff Brownhut founded

Workington Comets The Workington Comets are a British motorcycle speedway club, based in Workington, Cumbria based at the Northside Speedway track (known as the GT Tyres Arena for sponsorship purposes). The team previously operated from 1970 to 2018 and were ba ...

after a successful application was made by for a licence to race at

Derwent Park Derwent Park is a Rugby League Stadium and former motorcycle speedway in Workington, England situated beside the Cumbrian River Derwent. It is used mostly for rugby league matches and is the home stadium of Workington Town who play in Leagu ...

for the 1970 season. The move is credited in helping the

Workington Town Workington Town is a semi-professional rugby league club based in Workington, West Cumbria, England. The club plays home games at Derwent Park and competes in the RFL League One, League One, the third tier of British rugby league system, Briti ...

rugby league club avert financial troubles. The rugby pitch required moving 25 yards sideways to accommodate the speedway track. Thomas started a company called Premier Sporting Promotions and in 1971 began to bring entertainment acts such as

Ken Dodd Sir Kenneth Arthur Dodd (8 November 1927 – 11 March 2018) was an English stand-up comedy, comedian, actor and singer. He was described as "the last great music hall entertainer" and was primarily known for his live stand-up comedy, stand-up pe ...

to Derwent Park. In 1971, he also brought speedway back to

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

, when the

Hull Vikings The Hull Vikings were a Motorcycle speedway, speedway team from Kingston upon Hull, Hull, England, who operated from 1971 to 2005, primarily from The Boulevard (stadium) and Craven Park, Hull, Craven Park. History Origins, 1940s and Hull An ...

began to race at the Boulevard Stadium. It was at Hull that he formed a promoting partnership with

Wally Mawdsley Walter Mawdsley (30 November 1926 – 12 February 2009) was a motorcycle speedway rider, manager and promoter from England. He was the team manager of the England national speedway team from to 1983 to 1984. Biography Mawdsley, born in Salfo ...

. In 1974, Thomas bought the defunct Sunderland Gladiators licence and transferred it to re-form the Newcastle Diamonds, entering the team to race in the

1975 New National League season The 1975 New National League was contested as the second division/tier of Speedway in the United Kingdom when British League Division Two was renamed. It was subsequently named the National League. The change came about following unrest between ...

. Thomas was named the manager of the England team in December 1979, to work alongside

Eric Boocock Eric Henry Boocock (born 28 February 1945 in Dewsbury, England) is a former motorcycle speedway rider who appeared in three Speedway World Championship finals. He was the joint manager of the Great Britain national speedway team with Colin Pra ...

, who was named coach and technical adviser. As England team manager he saw the international success, which included winning the

1980 Speedway World Team Cup The 1980 Speedway World Team Cup was the 21st edition of the FIM Speedway World Team Cup to determine the team world champions. The final took place at the Vojens Speedway Center in Denmark. England won their eighth title to extend their record ...

and

1980 Speedway World Pairs Championship The 1980 Speedway World Pairs Championship was the eleventh Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, FIM Speedway World Pairs Championship. The final took place at the Matija Gubec Stadium in Krško, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ...

. His career took a dive after he incurred financial losses of £40,000 with Newcastle during the 1984 season. He was forced to sell his house before launching a new promotion company. He returned to speedway organising

ice speedway Ice speedway is a developed form of motorcycle speedway racing, featuring racing on frozen surfaces. The sport uses bikes enhanced for the terrain. Participants can compete at international level. Outline The bikes race counterclockwise arou ...

with co-promoter Graham Drury at

Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...

before working with Tony Mole in bringing back Workington Comets to race in the 1999

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

. Workington experienced a golden era, winning multiple trophies from 1999 to 2010. Thomas died from cancer in 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Ian 1942 births 2011 deaths Speedway promoters People from Ilkley