N.Z. speedway star fined

Press, 18 April 1981, Page 56

N.Z. speedway star fined

NZPA London New Zealand speedway star, Mitch Shirra, was fined £lOO yesterday for hitting another rider after a race'. Shirra, the 22-year-old star of the Coventry Bees team, finished last in a race then went into the pits and punched the winner, said the prosecutor, Mr Tony Banham. . Shirra who earns £20,000 a year as the Bees’ vice-cap-tain, pleaded guilty to assault when he appeared be-

fore'Hailsham magistrates in Sussex. . But through his solicitor he said that his rival, the Finnish ■’ champion,: Kai Niemi, who rides for the Birmingham Brummies, had been trying to force him off the Mr Banham said that the incident happened at a meeting at the Arlington Stadium in East; Germany last summer. .A ’ Shirra, who lives in Coventry,'had been racing against

the Eastbourne Eagles, for whom Niemi then rode. “In the twelfth race Shirra came last and Niemi came first,” said Mr Banham. “Niemi returned to the pits and was taking off his helmet when the defendant went up to him and said: ‘Don’t do that again? The defendant then hit him in the 1 face causing him to fall backwards and hit his head against the concrete wall.” ■ Niemi suffered concussion, bruising, and, a cut mouth.

Mr Jim Blake-Dyke, defending, said that Shirra was “furious” about the other rider’s behaviour. “Earlier that month there was an incident at White City when Mr Shirra and Mr Niemi were practising fbr the world championship and Mr Niemi rode across him causing him to - crash. He was badly concussed and Mr Niemi was fined by the international speedway body fdr the incident .

“At Arlington Mr Shirra says that Mr Niemi rode across him again, making him crash into the fence. In the second race in which they rode together he did it again and Mr Shirra was furious. “He went up to him afterwards and Mr Niemi was aggressive towards him. He thought he was going to hit him but he hit him first. “It was something that happened in the heat of the moment."