Zdeněk Simota (born 4 May 1985 in Prachatice, Czech Republic) also known as Sam Simota,[1][2] is a former motorcycle speedway rider from the Czech Republic.[3] He earned 5 international caps for the Czech Republic national speedway team.[4]

Zdeněk Simota
Born (1985-05-04) 4 May 1985 (age 39)
Prachatice, Czech Republic
NicknameSam Simota
NationalityCzech
Career history
Czech Republic
?PK Plzeň
Great Britain
2005–2007Reading
2008Peterborough
2014–2016Plymouth
Poland
2007–2009Łódź
2011Krosno
Denmark
2009–2010Brovst

Career

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Simota began riding at the age of nine. The highlights of his career were becoming the Czech Under-21 Champion in 2004 and reaching the semi-final of the European Championships. He has been a meeting reserve in the Czech 2006 Speedway Grand Prix.

In 2005, Simota was introduced into the British Premier League for the Reading Racers[5][6][7] as an injury replacement for Danny Bird. In 2007, he rode for the Racers in the Elite League.

During a race meet in Hungary in May 2008 Simota suffered serious injuries which ended his season. By 2009, he was back in training and rode for the Czech team AK Plzeň, the Polish team Orzel Lodz, and the Danish team Brovst.

He returned to Britain in 2014 and spent three seasons with Plymouth Devils from 2014 until 2016.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Speedway: Plymouth Devils sign Sam Simota as temporary cover". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  2. ^ Oakes, P (2006). Speedway Star Almanac. Pinegen Ltd. p. 85. ISBN 0-9552376-1-0.
  3. ^ "Zdeněk Simota Czechy". Polish Speedway Database. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  4. ^ "ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  5. ^ "Simota forced to wait for his debut". Berkshire Live. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
  6. ^ "Racers snap up new Czech mate". Surrey Live. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  7. ^ "2008 Rider index" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 4 April 2023.