Former SGP2 star Francis Gusts says international teammate Andzejs Lebedevs’ success has shone a spotlight on speedway in Latvia.
The sport has reached new heights in the Baltic nation in recent years, with Gusts and Lebedevs part of the team that took Latvia to its first-ever FIM Speedway world team final in the 2021 FIM Speedway of Nations.
Since then, Latvia has reached a second FIM SON Final in Manchester last year and Gusts led the under-21 team that won 2023 FIM Speedway of Nations – SON2 bronze in Riga – the country's first speedway world team medal of any colour.
There’s no doubt Lebedevs has been the star of the show, becoming the country’s first-ever full-time Speedway GP rider in 2024, before retaining his place for 2025 by winning his second Speedway European Championship. He also reached his first SGP final in Vojens last September.
The form of Latvia’s riders, coupled with the growth of the OlyBet FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga over the past two years, has taken speedway to new heights in Gusts’ homeland. And he is definitely noticing the impact.
He said: “Some years ago, no-one knew what speedway is in Latvia. Now, I don’t want to say that people recognise me in the street, but it is close to this. The popularity of speedway in Latvia and Riga is growing. That’s thanks to Andzejs because he is European champion and a GP rider. This gives some more attention to speedway.
“The sport’s popularity is going up little by little and step by step, it is getting more popular and more popular. I notice the difference. Our young riders are the future of speedway, so the media talks about us too.”
Gusts is also pleased to see a growing number of young riders on track at Bikernieki – venue for the Speedway GP event in Riga, where he first discovered the sport.
“You should see how many little guys are at the academy,” he said. “When I started, there were a lot of guys. Then there was a black hole and not a lot of riders were there for a while. Now there are a lot of young riders again who want to try speedway.”