Russia banned by FIM from the Ice Speedway World Championship, Italy is in

In Sweden, at the renowned Kallehov facility in Örnsköldsvik, the 2026 Ice Speedway World Championship season has kicked off. One of the most spectacular motorcycle disciplines on the planet has, however, since 2022 been unable to count on the strongest “gladiators” (as the riders are called) at the start, due to the exclusion of Russian athletes from competitions under the FIM umbrella.

Following the outbreak of the Russia–Ukraine conflict, in March 2022 the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme decided to ban Russian riders from participating in any FIM-branded event. While this ban has had little impact on most two-wheeled disciplines given the limited participation of Russian motorcyclists, in Ice Speedway it has essentially upended the competitive hierarchy.

Russia is effectively the reigning nation of Ice Speedway, having won world titles repeatedly from 2004 to 2020 and triumphing in 38 of the first 42 editions of the Nations competition. This ban, decided by the FIM Board and revisited at every meeting (most recently as well) without any reversal, has created no small number of problems for the Russian gladiators themselves. Some were able to make Ice Speedway their profession, provided they could race in the World Championship. Participation in the national series alone, however popular, did not guarantee prize money sufficient to carry on.

Over the last four seasons, therefore, Ice Speedway has run without the big names, rediscovering several veterans. In the qualifying round in Örnsköldsvik, aimed at determining the eight riders admitted to the finals scheduled in Inzell (Germany) and Heerenveen (Netherlands), 57-year-old Austrian Franz “Franky” Zorn—virtually a constant presence in the discipline since the 1990s—came out on top. In the event standings he finished ahead of 59-year-old Finn Aki Ala-Riihimäki, with Germany’s Johann Weber completing the podium. Good news for Italy: Luca Bauer, German by birth but racing since 2018 with an Italian FMI license, once again managed to qualify for the finals by securing the eighth available slot in this qualifying event, thus giving continuity to the strong performances he has shown in recent years in both the European and World Championships.