Experience proved to be key in the qualifying rounda of the 2026 FIM Ice Speedway World Championship in \u00d6rnsk\u00f6ldsvik in Sweden where veterans Franz ‘Franky’ Zorn, Aki Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki and Johann Weber filled the podium positions and booked their places in the finals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At fifty-nine years old,\u00a0Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki\u00a0was the oldest rider in action\u00a0at the\u00a0immaculate\u00a0Kallehov circuit and the evergreen Finn and fifty-five-year-old Zorn were inseparable following maximum scores in their first three Heat races before the Austrian legend \u2013 silver medallist in 2023 \u2013 fought his way clear to claim overall victory with a\u00a0dominant\u00a0maximum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Weber \u2013 known affectionately as ‘Ice Hans’ to his many fans \u2013 was returning to top-flight racing following an extended lay-off for hand surgery and he claimed a very popular third ahead of home favourite Filip\u00a0J\u00e4ger who, by complete contrast to the experienced German, is beginning just his third season of racing at the highest level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With eight places up for grabs in this year’s three scheduled Finals \u2013 with the first two set for the weekend of 14-15 March at Inzell in Germany followed by the deciding Final at Heerenveen in the Netherlands on 11 April \u2013 the action was intense all the way through the twenty-Heat programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki, Zorn and 2022 silver medal winner Weber opened their accounts with victories on the scenic outdoor circuit and they were joined at the top following the first block of racing by Germany’s Max Niedermaier \u2013 himself an FIM Ice Speedway World Championship runner-up in 2024 \u2013\u00a0while there was just a point each for pre-event favourites Luk\u00e1\u0161 Hutla\u00a0and Luca Bauer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki, Zorn and Weber added further wins in the second block and Austrian Martin Posch collected his first\u00a0maximum score\u00a0of the afternoon, but\u00a0Max\u00a0Niedermaier failed to add to his total.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With their third victories of the afternoon, Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki \u2013 who defeated J\u00e4ger \u2013 and Zorn, who beat Weber, maintained their one-hundred per cent records as they pulled clear of the\u00a0chasing\u00a0pack. Czech star Hutla \u2013 last year’s European champion \u2013 also added a win following\u00a0an earlier\u00a0suspected mechanical issue and there was a victory for Swedish-based Dutchman Leon Kramer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With two blocks remaining to decide the eight qualifiers,\u00a0Weber ensured his progression with his third win of the programme and J\u00e4ger’s first win of the afternoon virtually guaranteed his place in the Finals. The fourth block also featured the showdown between the unbeaten pairing of Zorn and Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki with the Austrian taking a decisive win as FMNR track reserve Isak Dekkerhus separated the two\u00a0event\u00a0pace-setters before Max Niedermaier snatched a vital victory from Andrej Divis from the Czech Republic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Heading into the concluding block with their Finals places assured,\u00a0both Zorn and Ala-Riihim\u00e4ki signed off with wins after J\u00e4ger made sure of qualifying with\u00a0his second\u00a0victory, but even crossing the line first in his final Heat was not good enough to lift\u00a0brave\u00a0Dutch teenager Sebastian\u00a0Reitsma \u2013 who was carrying a\u00a0painful\u00a0shoulder injury \u2013 into the all-important top-eight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A strong second behind\u00a0Reitsma\u00a0was good enough to ensure Kramer made the cut in fifth with\u00a0Hutla,\u00a0Max Niedermaierand Bauer also progressing to the Finals where they will meet the top five finishers from last season’s\u00a0FIM Ice Speedway World Championship\u00a0led by Sweden’s reigning champion Martin Harrahiltunen\u00a0who has claimed gold for the last four consecutive seasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Global focus now shifts to the\u00a0Max Aicher Arena in Inzell in Germany\u00a0on\u00a014-15\u00a0March and\u00a0the Thialf Ice Stadium\u00a0in\u00a0Heerenveen in the Netherlands on\u00a011\u00a0April\u00a0for the three Finals that will decide the title.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Experience proved to be key in the qualifying rounda of the 2026 FIM Ice Speedway World Championship in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[333,311],"class_list":["post-8641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","tag-ice-speedway","tag-motorsports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t