Tomasz Gollob

Tomasz Robert Gollob (; born 11 April 1971 in Bydgoszcz, Poland) is a former Polish motorcycle speedway rider and 2010 World Champion. He appeared in every Speedway Grand Prix series between its inaugural season in 1995 and 2013. He earned 52 caps for the Poland national speedway team.

Career summary

Gollob spent almost all of his career with hometown club Bydgoszcz until he moved to Unia Tarnów in 2004. He has won the Polish Individual Championship eight times (between 1992 and 2009) and the Polish Pairs Championship ten times. He has also won the Polish Grand Prix eight times in thirteen years. He clinched the Speedway World Championship in 2010 after securing the championship in Terenzano, Italy. He is only the second Pole to ever win the World Championship, following in the footsteps of Jerzy Szczakiel who won in 1973.

Gollob also spent some time in Australia in the early-mid 1990s based at the North Arm Speedway in Adelaide. While in Australia, Gollob would race against many of his future World Championship rivals including Jason Crump, Leigh Adams, and Ryan Sullivan. Gollob is the only World Champion to win the Jack Young Solo Cup held in Adelaide each year in memory of Australia's 1951 and 1952 World Champion, Jack Young. He won the cup in 1995 at North Arm.

On 28 July 1996, Gollob won the Continental Final, which formed part of the 1997 Speedway Grand Prix Qualification.

Gollob was also a member of the Poland speedway team that won the World Team Cup in 1996 and the World Cup in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011.

In 2007, Gollob survived a plane crash with fellow rider Rune Holta. The plane, flown by his father Władysław, crashed on the way to a speedway meeting at Tarnów. Gollob escaped with cuts and bruises after pulling his father from the wreckage.

On retirement, Gollob had achieved 22 Grand Prix wins from 1995 until 2012.

In 2017, Gollob suffered serious injuries to head and spine in a motocross accident during a MX event in Northern Poland.

For his sport achievements, Gollob received the Order of Polonia Restituta:

World final appearances Individual World Championship 1993 - Pocking, Rottalstadion - 7th - 8pts 1994 - Vojens, Speedway Center - 16th - 0pts

World Pairs Championship 1993 - Vojens, Speedway Center (with Piotr Świst / Piotr Baron) - 5th - 15pts (15)

World Team Cup 1994 - Brokstedt, Holsteinring Brokstedt - 2nd - 20pts (16) 1995 - Bydgoszcz, Polonia Bydgoszcz Stadium - 6th - 13pts (12) 1996 - Diedenbergen, Speedway Arena Diedenbergen - Winner - 27pts (15) 1997 - Piła, Stadion Żużlowy Centrum - 2nd - 25pts (13) 1998 - Vojens, Speedway Center - 4th - 17pts (15)

World Cup 2001 - Wrocław, Olympic Stadium - 2nd - 65pts (27) 2002 - Peterborough, East of England Showground - 4th - 48pts (17) 2003 - Vojens, Speedway Center - 4th - 49pts (20) 2004 - Poole, Poole Stadium - 4th - 22pts (1) 2005 - Wrocław, Olympic Stadium - Winner - 62pts 2007 - Leszno, Alfred Smoczyk Stadium - Winner - 55pts 2008 - Vojens, Speedway Center - 2nd - 46pts 2009 - Leszno, Alfred Smoczyk Stadium - Winner - 44pts 2010 - Vojens, Speedway Center - Winner - 46pts

Individual Under-21 World Championship 1992 - Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm, Speedway Stadion Pfaffenhofen - 5th - 10pts

Speedway Grand Prix results Year Position Points Best Finish Notes 1995 9th 73 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 1996 12th 433rd 1997 3rd 92 Winner Won Swedish Grand Prix 1998 3rd 97 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 1999 2nd 98 Winner Won Czech Republic Grand Prix and Polish Grand Prix 2000 7th 64 5th 2001 3rd 89 Winner Won German Grand Prix 2002 7th 117 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 2003 6th 111 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 2004 6th 113 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 2005 7th 83 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 2006 8th 94 3rd 2007 4th 108 Winner Won Polish Grand Prix 2008 3rd 148 Winner Won Slovenian, Danish and German Grand Prix 2009 2nd 144 Winner Won Scandinavian and Italian Grand Prix 2010 1st 166 Winner Won Czech Republic, Polish, Nordic and Italian Grand Prix 2011 5th 106 Winner Won Danish Grand Prix 2012 4th 142 Winner Won Scandinavian Grand Prix 2013 9th 89 2nd

Family Gollob has two brothers and one sister.

Gollob's brother Jacek was also a speedway rider.