Kelvin Tatum
Encyclopedia
Kelvin Martin Tatum MBE
(born 8 February 1964, in Epsom
, England
) is a former British international motorcycle speedway
and Grasstrack
rider.
training school at the Hackney Wick Stadium
in the winter of 1982/1983. He was given his first team place at Hackney's rivals, the Wimbledon Dons
, riding in the top flight British League
in 1983. He finished the season with an average
of over six points per meeting.
In 1985 he signed for the Coventry Bees
, staying there for the next six seasons. Stints then followed at the Berwick Bandits
, Bradford Dukes
, Arena Essex Hammers, Poole Pirates
, Peterborough Panthers
, and the ill-fated London Lions
, with brother Neville Tatum among his team-mates.
Tatum became British Champion
twice; in 1987 and 1990.
Later in Tatum's career, he turned his attention to Grasstrack
and Long track
to much success. He won the Long Track World Championship three times between 1995 and 2000. Kelvin was almost unbeatable in domestic Grasstrack events in the latter stage of his career, winning 4 British Masters Championships. Inevitably, Kelvin won his last ever Grasstrack event, the Bonfire Burnup in 2006 at Collier Street
in Kent.
Champion in 1995 and British Grasstrack Champion four times: in 1996, 1999, 2000 and jointly in 2001.
speedway programmes as a presenter and commentator. He began commentating when taking a break from the sport, but continued when he returned to ride for the Arena Essex Hammers in 2002. He was awarded an MBE
in the 2003 New Year's Honours list.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 8 February 1964, in Epsom
Epsom
Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England. Small parts of Epsom are in the Borough of Reigate and Banstead. The town is located south-south-west of Charing Cross, within the Greater London Urban Area. The town lies on the chalk downland of Epsom Downs.-History:Epsom lies...
, 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...
) is a former British international motorcycle 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...
and 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...
rider.
Career
Tatum attended Brighton College from 1977 to 1980. He started riding speedway bikes at Hackney'sHackney Hawks
Hackney Hawks speedway opened in 1963 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London and operated until 1983.-Early days:Originally opened by Mike Parker, the promotion was then sold to Len Silver who was the club's promoter for the next twenty seasons....
training school at the Hackney Wick Stadium
Hackney Wick Stadium
Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, in the London Borough of Hackney, was opened in 1932 and was mainly used for greyhound racing and speedway.In 1994, a £12M stand and restaurant was built and the stadium was renamed the London Stadium, Hackney...
in the winter of 1982/1983. He was given his first team place at Hackney's rivals, the Wimbledon Dons
Wimbledon Dons
The Wimbledon Dons were a professional motorcycle speedway team who operated from the Wimbledon Stadium, Plough Lane in London.The track opened in 1928 and the Dons operated there from 1929 until 1991. They were closed during the Second World War but upon their re-opening in 1946 there were 42,000...
, riding in the top flight British League
Speedway British League
The British League was the top division of Speedway in the United Kingdom from 1965 until 1995 when it became known as the Premier League. Prior to 1965 the division had been known as the National League....
in 1983. He finished the season with an average
Calculated Match Average
Calculated Match Averages are calculated for every motorcycle speedway rider.The CMA is calculated from the following:\left \times4...
of over six points per meeting.
In 1985 he signed for the Coventry Bees
Coventry Bees
The Coventry Bees are a motorcycle speedway team based at Brandon near Coventry, England. A Coventry team was first formed in 1928 and competed in the Southern League and then the National League in the pre-war era at Brandon stadium. There were also meetings at a stadium in Lythalls Lane...
, staying there for the next six seasons. Stints then followed at the Berwick Bandits
Berwick Bandits
The Berwick Bandits are a speedway team based at Shielfield Park, Berwick upon Tweed, the club competes in the British Premier League.-Brief history:...
, Bradford Dukes
Bradford Dukes
The Bradford Dukes were a British motorcycle speedway team which operated from the Odsal Stadium in Bradford from 1986 until their closure in 1997.-History:...
, Arena Essex Hammers, Poole Pirates
Poole Pirates
Poole Pirates are a motorcycle speedway team based in Poole, England, competing in the British Elite League...
, Peterborough Panthers
Peterborough Panthers
The Peterborough Panthers are a British speedway team based in Peterborough, England.They were the British Elite League Speedway Champions in 1999 and 2006...
, and the ill-fated London Lions
London Lions (speedway)
The London Lions were a motorcycle speedway team that operated for one season in 1996 from the Hackney Wick Stadium, the former home of the Hackney Hawks and the Hackney Kestrels..-Management:...
, with brother Neville Tatum among his team-mates.
Tatum became British Champion
British Speedway Championship
The British Speedway Championship is an annual motorcycle speedway competition open to British national speedway riders. The winner of the event becomes the British Speedway Champion. It has been open in the past to riders from British dominions and was dominated in its early years by riders from...
twice; in 1987 and 1990.
Later in Tatum's career, he turned his attention to 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...
and Long track
Long track
The Long track is a very similar to speedway but it takes place on 1000 metre tracks and consequently speeds are much higher. There are also subtle differences between the machinery in that a longtrack bike is slightly larger and has a two-speed gearbox...
to much success. He won the Long Track World Championship three times between 1995 and 2000. Kelvin was almost unbeatable in domestic Grasstrack events in the latter stage of his career, winning 4 British Masters Championships. Inevitably, Kelvin won his last ever Grasstrack event, the Bonfire Burnup in 2006 at Collier Street
Collier Street
Collier Street is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Maidstone in Kent, England.The village of Collier Street includes a Church, primary school, village hall, a small business estate and several farms. St. Margaret's church forms the centre of the village and was built between 1847...
in Kent.
World Final Appearances
- 19851985 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1985 Individual Speedway World Championship.-World final:*August 31, 1985 Bradford, Odsal Stadium...
-
United Kingdom BradfordBradfordBradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, Odsal StadiumOdsal StadiumOdsal Stadium is a stadium situated in Odsal, Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. The venue is used for rugby league and has been the home ground of Bradford Bulls/Bradford Northern since 1934...
- 8th - 8pts - 19861986 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1986 Individual Speedway World Championship.-World final:*August 30, 1986 Chorzów, Silesian Stadium...
-
Poland ChorzówChorzówChorzów is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Chorzów is one of the central districts of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union - a metropolis with a population of 2 million...
, Silesian Stadium - 3rd - 12pts - 19881988 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1988 Individual Speedway World Championship.-World final:*September 3, 1988 Vojens, Vojens Speedway Center...
-
Denmark VojensVojensVojens Municipality , was a municipality in the former South Jutland County on the Jutland peninsula in south Denmark. The municipality, which existed from 1970 to 2006, covered an area of 298 km², and had a total population of 16,792...
, Speedway Center - 8th - 8pts - 19891989 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1989 Individual Speedway World Championship.-World final:*September 2, 1989 Munich, Olympic Stadium*Referee: Henry van den Boomen* Troy Butler replaced the injured Jan O. Pedersen-Classification:...
-
Germany MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Olympic StadiumOlympic Stadium (Munich)Olympiastadion is a stadium located in Munich, Germany. Situated at the heart of the Olympiapark München in northern Munich, the stadium was built as the main venue for the 1972 Summer Olympics....
- 5th - 10pts - 19901990 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1990 Individual Speedway World Championship.-Continental Final:*August 12, 1990 Norden, Motodrom Halbemond-North American Final:*June 2, 1990 Long Beach, Veterans Memorial Stadium-Scandinavian Final:*June 9, 1990 Linköping, Motorstadium...
- United Kingdom BradfordBradfordBradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, Odsal StadiumOdsal StadiumOdsal Stadium is a stadium situated in Odsal, Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. The venue is used for rugby league and has been the home ground of Bradford Bulls/Bradford Northern since 1934...
- 7th - 9pts - 19911991 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1991 Individual Speedway World Championship.-World final:*August 31, 1991 Göteborg, Ullevi...
-
Sweden Göteborg, UlleviUlleviUllevi is a stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden. The stadium was built for the 1958 FIFA World Cup, but since then Ullevi has also hosted the 1995 World Championships in Athletics and the 2006 European Championships in Athletics, the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup finals in 1983 and 1990, the UEFA Euro 1992...
- 8th - 8pts - 19921992 Individual Speedway World ChampionshipThe 1992 Individual Speedway World Championship.-World final:*August 29, 1992 Wrocław, Olympic Stadium...
- Poland Wrocław, Olympic StadiumOlympic Stadium (Wroclaw)Olympic Stadium in Wrocław is a multi-purpose stadium in Wrocław, Poland. It is currently used mostly for football matches and speedway racing. It serves as the home stadium of Atlas Wrocław. The stadium has a capacity of 35,000 people and was opened in 1935. The stadium was supposed to be used...
- 10th - 6pts
Longtrack and grasstrack
Tatum has been World Longtrack Champion three times, in 1995, 1998 and 2000, and missed out on a fourth title in 2004 when his bike broke down whilst leading the final. Tatum was also the European GrasstrackGrasstrack
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...
Champion in 1995 and British Grasstrack Champion four times: in 1996, 1999, 2000 and jointly in 2001.
After retirement
Kelvin is now a television presenter, appearing on Sky SportsSky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
speedway programmes as a presenter and commentator. He began commentating when taking a break from the sport, but continued when he returned to ride for the Arena Essex Hammers in 2002. He was awarded an MBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in the 2003 New Year's Honours list.