One of Poland’s Speedway GP greats, Jaroslaw Hampel, has announced his retirement.
Hampel is a six-time FIM Speedway World Cup winner with Poland and finished second to compatriot Tomasz Gollob in the 2010 FIM Speedway Grand Prix series, before taking silver again in 2013. He also won bronze in 2011.
The Lodz-born racer picked up six Speedway GP victories. His first came at the 2010 FIM Danish Speedway GP in Copenhagen, before he won in Malilla in 2011. He then racked up a hat-trick of SGP victories in Auckland, Gorzow and Krsko in 2013, before topping the podium in Swedish capital Stockholm with a seven-ride, 21-point maximum in 2014.
He ended his Speedway GP career with 953 championship points from 96 SGP appearances. He raced in 546 SGP heats, winning 172 of them, and reached 32 finals, winning six.
Hampel will go down as one of Poland’s all-time greats, with his 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013 FIM SWC wins with his country among his proudest moments as he joined Gollob in ushering in a golden age for speedway in Poland.
Announcing his decision during Eleven Sports’ PGE Ekstraliga coverage from Lublin, the 43-year-old said: “I'll be brief. This is how I feel today. I felt the moment was coming when I had to say 'enough'. I won't go into details, because this isn't the time. But I felt deep down that I couldn't race anymore. This decision was very difficult, but only at the beginning. Now I'm used to it. It is what it is.”
Looking back on a 27-year career, Hampel added: “I spent quite a few years in this sport. I even had the opportunity to meet the great Ivan Mauger, a six-time world champion. There will probably be plenty of sporting memories. It's not easy to gather them all – it has been a long time.
“The moment came when I had to say, ‘It's over’. I made this decision very consciously and thoughtfully. This is the moment I'm announcing it. A heartfelt thank you to the fans across Poland and around the world. There were countless performances and tournaments. Various leagues. A truly huge, huge thank you. It was a great pleasure to represent the country and the Polish colours.”
Hampel last appeared in Speedway GP at the 2015 FIM Speedway GP of Czech Republic – Prague, finishing second, before his title challenge was ended by a broken leg. That was also the year when a young Bartosz Zmarzlik won the FIM SGP Challenge in Rybnik to qualify for the 2016 Speedway GP series. Since then, Zmarzlik has become a five-time Speedway GP world champion – and he could make it a record-equalling six at the Deluxe Homeart FIM Speedway GP of Denmark – Vojens on September 13.
Zmarzlik will always have fond memories of racing with Hampel – a rider he competed alongside for Swedish club Vetlanda.
He said: “I spent some really great times with Jarek. I remember watching the Grand Prix as a kid, and it was always Hampel and Gollob. You were constantly inspired by them.
“Then there was a time in Sweden when I had the opportunity to get to know him better. Even today, we reminisced about the time when I was 16 and Jarek and I had to fly to Piła because we had a Poland vs. the Rest of the World match, and we were also traveling in Sweden.
“I remember him taking care of me like a dad – he fed me and took me home. I'll remember that day for a long time. A great rider, a great man. Huge congratulations to him for his career, because he has made a real name for himself in speedway.”
Everyone at FIM Speedway wishes Jarek a fantastic retirement and all the best for the future.