- Bluey Wilkinson
Infobox Speedway rider
ridername= Bluey Wilkinson
nationality = flagicon|Australia Australia
dateofbirth = Birth date|1911|8|27|mf=y
dateofdeath = death date and age|1940|7|27|1911|8|27|df=y
cityofbirth =Millthorpe
countryofbirth =Australia
retired = Retired
career =West Ham Hammers
years = 1929-1939
indivhonour = World Championship
Australian National Champion
indivyear = 1938
1935, 1938
teamhonour = National League Champion
teamyear = 1937Arther George 'Bluey' Wilkinson (born 27 August 1911
Millthorpe ,Australia - died 27 July 1940) [Belton, Brian (2004). "Bluey Wilkinson". ISBN 0-7524-2872-1] was an international speedway rider.Early life
He was nicknamed Bluey because of his red hair (an Australian custom). At the age of four, Bluey's family moved to
Bathurst, New South Wales which he really considered to be his home town.Career
He rode in the UK for the
West Ham Hammers [Belton, Brian (2003). "Hammerin' Round". ISBN 0-7524-2438-6] from 1929 to 1939. 1935 saw Bluey win the Australian Championship, winning it again in 1938, both the three lap and four lap titles. He also finished third in theStar Riders' Championship , the forerunner to theSpeedway World Championship in 1933.In 1937 He won the League Championship with the Hammers and won the ACU Cup the following year. However the pinnacle of his career was becoming World Champion in 1938 after finishing third in the inaugural competition in 1936. [Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). "A History of the World Speedway Championship". Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5]
World Final Appearances
* 1936 - Flag|GBR Wembley - 3rd - 25pts
* 1938 - Flag|GBR Wembley - Winner - 22ptsDeath
Bluey was killed in a road accident in Australia when on 27 July 1940, the motorcycle he was riding was struck by a lorry which had swerved to avoid a car. He was killed almost instantly with a fractured skullcite book|last=Prior|first=James|title=Australian Dictionary of Biography|publisher=Melbourne University Press|date=1990|volume=12|pages=490|url=http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A120550b.htm|language=English] but his wife Muriel, who was riding
pillion survived with serious head injuries.External links
* [http://vintagespeedway.homestead.com/Bluey.html Bluey Wilkinson]
* [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A120550b.htm Wilkinson, Arthur George (1911 - 1940)]References
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