Sport in Cornwall
Encyclopedia
Planning and politics
Infrastructure and facilitiesCurrently the major hurdle for Cornish sports is the lack of infrastructure and facilities compared to other areas of the UK. There is no stadium suitable for professional sport, and although facilities have started to develop, the 30-year hiatus has had a lasting road-blocking effect. Cornish Pirates and Truro City have been in discussions apparently to solve this problem, although with little assistance from Cornwall County Council.
Commonwealth Games
An application for a place in the 2006 Commonwealth Games
2006 Commonwealth Games
The 2006 Commonwealth Games were held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia between 15 March and 26 March 2006. It was the largest sporting event to be staged in Melbourne, eclipsing the 1956 Summer Olympics in terms of the number of teams competing, athletes competing, and events being held.The site...
was refused by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF). Campaigners formed the Cornwall Commonwealth Games Association and claimed that Cornwall should be recognised with a team, in the way that other sub-state entities such as England, Guernsey
Guernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
and the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
are. However, the CGF noted that it was not their place to make political decisions on whether or not Cornwall is a separate nation.
In 2010, the Cornwall Commonwealth Games Association, considered launching a political challenge against the decision of the CGF, stating that all criteria for entry to the Commonwealth Games had been fulfilled by the Cornish bid, and by rejecting it, the CGF were going against their own terms and conditions.
As of December 2010 the campaign has, again, been terminated by its instigators, no reason has yet been given for this.
Combat sports
Cornish wrestling
Cornish wrestling is a form of wrestling which has been established in Cornwall, an area of southwest Britain for several centuries. The referee is known as a 'stickler', and it is claimed that the popular meaning of the word as a 'pedant' originates from this usage...
related to Breton wrestling. This has encouraged tournaments between the two nations. Cornish wrestling
Cornish wrestling
Cornish wrestling is a form of wrestling which has been established in Cornwall, an area of southwest Britain for several centuries. The referee is known as a 'stickler', and it is claimed that the popular meaning of the word as a 'pedant' originates from this usage...
(also known as Wrasslin') is a regional, folk style of grappling
Grappling
Grappling refers to techniques, maneuvers, and counters applied to an opponent in order to gain a physical advantage, such as improving relative position, escaping, submitting, or injury to the opponent. Grappling is a general term that covers techniques used in many disciplines, styles and martial...
or martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
. The Cornish Wrestling Association was formed in 1923, to standardise the rules of the sport and to promote Cornish wrestling throughout Cornwall and the world. Together with Cornish hurling
Cornish Hurling
Cornish Hurling or Hurling the Silver Ball , is an outdoor team game of Celtic origin played only in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is played with a small silver ball...
(a localised form of medieval football), Wrasslin' has been promoted as a distinctly Celtic game, tied closely with Cornish identity.
Helston-born boxer Bob Fitzsimmons
Bob Fitzsimmons
Robert James "Bob" Fitzsimmons , was a British boxer who made boxing history as the sport's first three-division world champion. He also achieved fame for beating Gentleman Jim Corbett, the man who beat John L. Sullivan, and is in The Guinness Book of World Records as the Lightest heavyweight...
(May 26, 1863 - October 22, 1917), who moved to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
as a child, was the first ever boxer to become Heavyweight, Light-Heavyweight and Middleweight World Champion. Len Harvey
Len Harvey
Len Harvey was a boxer born in Stoke Climsland, Cornwall. A great tactician and defensive boxer who boxed at every weight division of his day. He began boxing at the very young age of 12 and boxed to he was 36. He was British champion at three weights, middleweight, light-heavy and heavyweight...
was another notable boxer from Cornwall.
Hurling
Cornwall's other national sport is hurling, a kind of medieval football played with a silver ball. Hurling is distinct from Irish HurlingHurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
. The sport now takes place in St Columb Major
St Columb Major
St Columb Major is a civil parish and town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Often referred to locally as St Columb, it is situated approximately seven miles southwest of Wadebridge and six miles east of Newquay...
, St Ives
St Ives, Cornwall
St Ives is a seaside town, civil parish and port in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town lies north of Penzance and west of Camborne on the coast of the Celtic Sea. In former times it was commercially dependent on fishing. The decline in fishing, however, caused a shift in commercial...
and Bodmin only.
Rugby football
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
has a large following in Cornwall. The followers of the county side are dubbed Trelawny's Army. In 1999 Cornwall made the County Championships finals, played at Twickenham Stadium, with Cornwall beating Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
to win the cup.
Cornish rugby has produced many fine rugby players who have played at international level. Such players as Phil Vickery
Phil Vickery (rugby player)
Philip John Vickery MBE is a former English rugby union tighthead prop and member of the England squad. He was a member of England's World Cup winning squad in 2003, playing in all seven matches in the tournament, and is a former England captain. Vickery ended his club rugby career at Wasps,...
and Trevor Woodman
Trevor Woodman
Trevor James Woodman MBE is a former English rugby union footballer. He went to Liskeard School in Cornwall and won representative honours with Cornwall Under 16s....
won 2003 Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
winners medals with England, Brian 'Stack' Stevens
Brian 'Stack' Stevens
Claude Brian 'Stack' Stevens is a former English rugby union player who played prop for Penzance and Newlyn, Harlequins and represented England 25 times at international level between 1970 to 1975. He also toured with the British and Irish Lions to Australia and New Zealand in 1971.-References:...
(England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
), Graham Dawe
Graham Dawe
Richard Graham Reed Dawe is a former English rugby union footballer and the former coach of Plymouth Albion.He played for Bath Rugby, Sale Sharks, Plymouth Albion and Launceston RFC....
(England), along with Andy Reed who has represented Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and the Lions, and many others.
Also, the Cornish rugby team can boast an Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
silver medal. In 1908, they won the County Championship for the first time, and the prize was to represent Great Britain at rugby in the 1908 Olympic Games
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
. They lost to Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
32-3 in the final, and to this day remain the only county side to represent Great Britain at rugby in the Olympics (See Rugby union at the 1908 Summer Olympics
Rugby union at the 1908 Summer Olympics
Rugby union at the 1908 Summer Olympics. The event was summarised under the "Football" heading along with association football. The host Great Britain was represented by Cornwall, the 1908 county champion...
for more details and the teams).
Association football
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
is widely held to be the most popular sport in Cornwall, association football has increased in popularity. Truro City F.C.
Truro City F.C.
Truro City F.C. are an English professional football club based in Truro, Cornwall. They currently play in the Conference South following five promotions in six seasons. They were founding members of the South Western League in 1951 and won the title five times in their history...
have the largest following; and currently play in the Southern Football League Premier Division. This fits in with their Chairman's (Kevin Heaney) ambitions to eventually play in league football, a prospect that is realistically expected to take around 5 years, as they still have several steps to progress up the pyramid structure of leagues. Truro City F.C.
Truro City F.C.
Truro City F.C. are an English professional football club based in Truro, Cornwall. They currently play in the Conference South following five promotions in six seasons. They were founding members of the South Western League in 1951 and won the title five times in their history...
became the first ever Cornish football club to win a national competition when in 2007 they won the FA Vase
FA Vase
The Football Association Challenge Vase is an annual football competition for teams playing below Step 4 of the English National League System...
, defeating AFC Totton 3-1 in the final. There are no professional clubs in the county, so most of Cornwall's football fans follow Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
, who play just over the Devon border.
The Cornish Football Association was founded in 1889. In 2007, Truro City became the first Cornish team to play at Wembley, where they won the FA Vase
FA Vase
The Football Association Challenge Vase is an annual football competition for teams playing below Step 4 of the English National League System...
. In 1966, Cornishman Mike Trebilcock
Mike Trebilcock
Michael "Mike" Trebilcock is a retired Cornish professional footballer. He played primarily as a winger and is most famous for scoring twice in the 1966 FA Cup Final for Everton, becoming the first black player to score in an FA Cup Final.Mike Trebilcock played for non-league Tavistock before...
scored two goals for Everton
Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
in the FA Cup Final. John Gilbert Jack Cock
Jack Cock
John Gilbert "Jack" Cock DCM MM was an English footballer who played for various English club sides as a striker. He also had the distinction of being the first Cornishman to play for the England national team, a decorated World War I soldier, and an actor...
DCM MM (14 November 1893 - 19 April 1966) was a Cornish footballer who played for various English club sides as a striker. He also had the distinction of being the first Cornishman to play, and score, for the England national team. He was a decorated World War I soldier, and an actor. Chris Morris
Chris Morris (footballer)
Christopher "Chris" B. Morris is a former professional footballer who made his name as a defender with Celtic in Scotland and Sheffield Wednesday & Middlesbrough in England, among others...
represented the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
at the 1990 World Cup & the 1988 European Championships. In 1901 Cornish miners founded the first football team in Mexico, Club de Futbol Pachuca. Originally, they practised only as a pastime during their free time they had while working at the mines. From 1917 to 1920, Pachuca
Pachuca
Pachuca, formally Pachuca de Soto is the capital of the Mexican state of Hidalgo. It is located in the south-central part of the state. Pachuca de Soto is also the name of the municipality of which the city serves as municipal seat...
was champion of the league under Cornish born coach Alfred C. Crowle
Alfred C. Crowle
Alfred C. Crowle was the Cornish born miner who emigrated to Pachuca in Mexico and in 1935 became manager to the national Mexican football team.-Cornish Miners bringing football to Mexico:...
.
Cricket
One of the earliest references to cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
in Cornwall is 1816 and Sir William Pratt Call of Whiteford House
Whiteford House
Whiteford House was an English country house built in 1775 in Stoke Climsland, Cornwall. The house was built by Sir John Call of Whiteford on his return from India....
in Stoke Climsland
Stoke Climsland
Stoke Climsland is a village in the River Tamar Valley, Cornwall, United Kingdom within the civil parish of Stokeclimsland.The manor of Climsland was one of the 17 Antiqua maneria of the Duchy of Cornwall.-Notable buildings:...
, organised a match against the Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
Garrison
Garrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
, and noted:- tea and a meal in a marquee at 6 o'clock. Cornwall County Cricket Club
Cornwall County Cricket Club
Cornwall County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the Minor Counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Cornwall and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy...
competes in the Minor Counties Championship, the second tier National County structure. There is also a Cornwall Cricket League
Cornwall Cricket League
The Cornwall Cricket League is the top level of competition for recreational club cricket in Cornwall, England, and is a designated ECB Premier League.-Winners:...
.
Notable Cornish cricketers include the following:
- Jack CrappJack CrappJohn "Jack" Frederick Crapp was an English cricketer, who played first-class cricket for Gloucestershire between 1936 and 1956, and played for England on tour in the winter of 1948-49....
, England cricketer - Malcolm Dunstan, former First Class cricketer with Gloucestershire CCC (began at Troon Cricket ClubTroonTroon is a town in South Ayrshire. It is situated on the west coast of Scotland, about eight miles north of Ayr and three miles northwest of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport. Lying across the Firth of Clyde, the Isle of Arran can be seen. Troon is also a port with freight and ferry services...
) - Neil EdwardsNeil Edwards (cricketer)Neil Edwards is an English cricketer who plays for Nottinghamshire. He is a left-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler. He scored 213 for Cornwall under-19s against Dorset when only 16 years old and played for Cornwall in the Minor Counties Championship in 2000...
, First Class cricketer with Somerset CCC - Carl GazzardCarl GazzardCarl Gazzard is a former English cricketer who played for Somerset. He was a right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper.He made his debut for Cornwall in 1998 and was their regular wicket-keeper in 1998 and 1999...
, First Class cricketer with Somerset CCC - Pasty HarrisPasty HarrisMichael John Harris is an English cricketer who played for various first class cricket teams. He played from 1964 until 1982 in a 344-game career which took him to South Africa and New Zealand...
, First Class cricketer - Michael MundayMichael MundayFor the Canadian volleyball player with the same name see Michael Munday Michael Kenneth Munday is an English cricketer who played for Somerset until 2010...
, First Class cricketer with Somerset CCC - Anthony Penberthy, former First Class cricketer with Northamptonshire CCC
- Jack RichardsJack RichardsJack Richards is an English former cricketer, who played in eight Tests and twenty two ODIs for England from 1981 to 1988...
, England cricketer - Charlie ShreckCharlie ShreckCharles Edward 'Charlie' Shreck was born at Truro, Cornwall and educated at Polwhele House School and Truro School. He is an English professional County cricketer who has also played first class cricket in New Zealand. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-medium bowler...
, First Class cricketer with Nottinghamshire CCC - Marcus TrescothickMarcus TrescothickMarcus Edward Trescothick MBE is an English cricketer. He plays first-class cricket for Somerset County Cricket Club, and represented England in 76 Test matches and 123 One Day Internationals. A left-handed opening batsman, he made his first-class debut for Somerset in 1993 and quickly established...
, England cricketer of Cornish lineage.
Water sports and climbing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
, surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
and gig rowing
Cornish pilot gig
The Cornish pilot gig is a six-oared rowing boat, built of Cornish narrow leaf elm, long with a beam of four feet ten inches.It is recognised as one of the first shore-based lifeboats that went to vessels in distress, with recorded rescues going back as far as the late 17th century.The original...
. International events are frequently held in Cornwall. International events in both are held in Cornwall. Cornwall hosted the Inter-Celtic Watersports Festival in 2006.
Surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
was popularised in Cornwall during the late 20th century, and has since become readily associated with Cornishness. The waves around the Cornish coastline are created by low pressure systems from the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
which unleash powerful swells eastwards creating multiple, excellent surfing conditions around Cornwall. Newquay
Newquay
Newquay is a town, civil parish, seaside resort and fishing port in Cornwall, England. It is situated on the North Atlantic coast of Cornwall approximately west of Bodmin and north of Truro....
, one of Britain's "premier surfing towns", regularly hosts world championship surfing events. Surfing in particular is very popular, as locations such as Bude
Bude
Bude is a small seaside resort town in North Cornwall, England, at the mouth of the River Neet . It lies just south of Flexbury, north of Widemouth Bay and west of Stratton and is located along the A3073 road off the A39. Bude is twinned with Ergué-Gabéric in Brittany, France...
and Newquay
Newquay
Newquay is a town, civil parish, seaside resort and fishing port in Cornwall, England. It is situated on the North Atlantic coast of Cornwall approximately west of Bodmin and north of Truro....
offer some of the best surf in the UK. On September 2, 2007, 300 surfers arrived at Polzeath
Polzeath
Polzeath is a small seaside resort in the civil parish of St Minver in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately six miles north of Wadebridge on the Atlantic coast....
beach, Cornwall to set a new world record for the highest number of surfers riding the same wave (as part of the Global Surf Challenge and part of a project called Earthwave to raise awareness about global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
).
Pilot gig
Cornish pilot gig
The Cornish pilot gig is a six-oared rowing boat, built of Cornish narrow leaf elm, long with a beam of four feet ten inches.It is recognised as one of the first shore-based lifeboats that went to vessels in distress, with recorded rescues going back as far as the late 17th century.The original...
rowing has been popular for many years. The Isles of Scilly hosts the World Pilot Gig Championships every year. There are sailing clubs at some of the ports, e.g. Fowey. The Royal Fowey Yacht Club
Royal Fowey Yacht Club
The Royal Fowey Yacht Club is located in a waterfront setting at Fowey, on the south coast of Cornwall one of the UK's most secure harbours.Its antecedents can be traced back to 1880; its third Honorary Secretary, from 1893, was Arthur Quiller-Couch, who became Sir Arthur. The minutes and...
is located in a waterfront setting at Fowey: was founded in 1880. Its third Honorary Secretary, from 1893, was Arthur Quiller-Couch
Arthur Quiller-Couch
Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch was a Cornish writer, who published under the pen name of Q. He is primarily remembered for the monumental Oxford Book Of English Verse 1250–1900 , and for his literary criticism...
, who became Sir Arthur.
The Lerryn
Lerryn
Lerryn is a village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the River Lerryn approximately three miles southeast of Lostwithiel....
Regatta was a popular annual event and at one time it was called The Henley of the West. It was mentioned in the Royal Cornwall Gazette of 1870. There was a break for the first World War and the regatta restarted with a Peace Regatta in 1919. There was a second break for the second World War and the regatta restarted in 1953 and ran until 1968 when four thousand people
attended.
Rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
on the sea cliffs and inland cliffs has been popular since the pioneering work of A. W. Andrews
A. W. Andrews
Arthur Westlake Andrews was a British geographer, poet, rock-climber, and mountaineer.He trained as a geographer and became a teacher of geography and history in Southwark...
and others in the early 1900s, and is now highly developed.
Motor sport
Prince ChulaChula Chakrabongse
His Royal Highness Prince Chula Chakrabongse of Siam , was a member of the Siamese Royal Family, and the House of Chakrabhongse...
's cousin Bira
Prince Bira
12th, 1956 Melbourne, Star 19th, 1960 Rome, Star 22nd, 1964 Tokio, Dragon 21st, 1972 Munich, TempestPrince Birabongse Bhanudej Bhanubandh better known as Prince Bira of Siam , or by his nom de course B...
came to England in 1927, Chula was supervising a racing team called White Mouse Racing. Prince Bira decided to drive for him. In 1936 Chula's White Mouse team purchased an ERA
English Racing Automobiles
English Racing Automobiles was a British racing car manufacturer active from 1933 to 1954. Currently the ERA trademark is owned by a British kit-car manufacturer.-Prewar history:...
for Bira, and he quickly became one of the leading exponents of this class of international racing. Bira's partnership with Prince Chula ended in late 1948.
Davidstow Circuit
Davidstow Circuit
Davidstow Circuit is a disused motor racing circuit and airfield built in Cornwall, in the United Kingdom. The circuit was built on the site of a World War II bomber base, RAF Davidstow Moor, opened in 1942. Davidstow circuit opened in 1952, and held three Formula 1 races between 1954-1955...
was established in 1952 on the former military airfield and later modified. The track was 4.2 km (2.6 mi) long and used the main runways of RAF Davidstow Moor
RAF Davidstow Moor
RAF Davidstow Moor was an airbase at Davidstow near Camelford in Cornwall, United Kingdom from late 1942 until 1945. Despite a few periods of intense activity it was one of Coastal Command's less-used airfields.-History:...
. Three Formula 1 races
Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Race
The Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Races were three non-Championship motor races run to Formula One rules, held at Davidstow Circuit, in Cornwall, UK. There were two events in 1954 and one the following year, before the circuit ceased to host serious motor racing events.The second of these races marked the...
were held here between 1954-1955. The circuit hosted its last race in 1955.
From 2001 until 2003, the only fully professional sports team in Cornwall were the Trelawny Tigers
Trelawny Tigers
Trelawny Tigers operated as a British Premier League Speedway team during the 2001-2003 seasons at the Clay Country Moto Parc. The track, 230m in length, was unique in its setting being situated in a disused china clay pit near St Austell, Cornwall...
speedway
Motorcycle speedway
Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. Speedway motorcycles use only one gear and have no brakes and racing takes place on a flat oval track usually...
team, who raced at the Clay Country Moto Parc in the clay pits near St Austell. The team took over from the St Austell Gulls
St Austell Gulls
The St Austell Gulls were a Speedway team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1964 at the Cornish Stadium at Par, St Austell in Cornwall...
who were an amateur speedway team which operated from 1997 to 2000. The Gulls also operated at Par Moor in the 1950s. During the Trelawny Tigers years, a local young speedway rider emerged called Chris Harris
Chris Harris (speedway rider)
Christopher Calvin "Chris" Harris in Truro, Cornwall, nicknamed Bomber, is a Great Britain international speedway rider for the Belle Vue Aces in the United Kingdom.- Early career :...
who has since gone on to become one of the world's best riders. He is very popular in Cornwall and has twice won the local television personality of the year. Chris, nicknamed 'Bomber', came through the ranks of Grasstrack
Grasstrack
Motorcycle Grasstrack is a form of motorcycle racing which typically, in its current form, takes place on a flat track consisting of two straights and two bends usually constructed in a field. Mountain and hillside tracks are also common in the UK, creating more technically demanding circuits...
racing, another popular sport in Cornwall. He currently competes in the Speedway Grand Prix
Speedway Grand Prix
Speedway Grand Prix are a series of stand-alone speedway events over the course of a season used to determine the Speedway World Champion. As of 2008, all of the events take place in Europe.- Event format :...
, the elite speedway tournament.
See also
:Category:Cornish sports and games- List of Cornish sportsmen and sportswomen
- List of King George V Playing Fields (Cornwall)