7th European Ice Speedway Finals Begin in Ufa

On Saturday the finals of the 7th European bike race on ice have been officially opened in Ufa, the capital of Bashkiria in the Volga federal region.

Addressing competitors and spectators, Makhmut Bikbulatov, president of the Bashkir Motorcycling Federation, reminded them that 40 years ago Boris Samorodov from Ufa had won the first official tournament of the International Motorcycling Federation. In the same autumn of 1963, the international federation took a decision to stage a European championship in speedway races on ice. A biker from Ufa, Gabdrakhman Kadyrov, became the first champion of Europe then.

Makhmut Bikbulatov called it symbolical that the present European championship is held in Bashkiria on the same stadium where Kadyrov held many outstanding victories and in the year which Bashkirian President Murtaza Rakhimov called The Year of Sport and a Healthy Way of Life. "It is another proof that Bashkiria cherishes its history and achievements," stressed Makhmut Bikbulatov.

Participants in the European finals are racers from Austria, Belarus, the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, Finland, Czechia and Sweden. Five residents of Ufa are among the eight finalists vying in the name of the Russian Motor Federation.