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Initials JM/V/MR/ES


SPORT: MOTORCYCLE RACING

Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: GREAT BRITAIN DEFEATED RUSSIA BY 73 POINTS TO 35 IN THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY TEST MATCH OF THE SEASON, HELD AT THE FAMOUS WEMBLEY STADIUM JUST OUTSIDE LONDON. DESPITE THE MARGIN OF DEFEAT, THE RUSSIANS PUT UP A GREAT SHOW IN THEIR FIRST-EVER INTERNATIONAL IN BRITAIN. SADLY THE EVENING'S RACING WAS MARRED BY A SERIOUS ACCIDENT TO ONE OF THE RUSSIAN RIDERS, 22-YEAR-OLD VITALI SHILO. IN THE ELEVENTH RACE, HE CRASHED HEADLONG INTO THE SAFETY FENCE AND WAS TAKEN TO HOSPITAL WITH SEVERE HEAD INJURIES AND A SUSPECTED FRACTURED SKULL.

THE MATCH -- FIRST OF THREE TO BE CONTESTED THIS MONTH -- WAS WATCHED BY 27,000 SPECTATORS. FORMER MOTO-CROSS STAR AND PIONEER OF RUSSIAN SPEEDWAY RACING IGOR PLECHANOV, WAS THE HERO OF THE RUSSIAN EFFORT, SCORING 16 POINTS OUT OF A POSSIBLE MAXIMUM OF 18. AT THE END OF THE MATCH THE FANS CHANTED HIS NAME FOR HIM TO RETURN TO THE TRACK FOR A LAP OF HONOUR.

THE BRITISH TEAM HAD EXPERIENCE ON ITS SIDE, AND THREE OF ITS RIDERS -- BRIGGS, HOW AND BOOCOCK -- SCORED 16 POINTS EACH. SECOND HIGHEST SCORER FOR THE RUSSIANS WAS BORIS SAMORODOV, ANOTHER FORMER MOTO-CROSS STAR WHO SCORED 9.

SCOREBOARD:
GREAT BRITAIN: BRIGGS 16, HOW 16, BROADBANKS 10, BRETT 7, MCKINLAY 5, MCAULIFFE 2, CRESP 1.

RUSSIA: PLECHANOV 16, SAMORODOV 9, KURILENKO 4, KADIROV 3, CHEKRANOV 2, SHILO 1, GRUZINTSEV -NIL.

THE SECOND TEST MATCH OF THE SERIES WILL BE HELD NEXT WEDNESDAY (8TH JULY), IN COVENTRY, WITH THE THIRD AND FINAL CONTEST AT MANCHESTER NEXT SATURDAY (11TH JULY).