I
t was a wonderful Copen-
hagen for Hans Andersen, a
wild-card winner of the Dan-
ish Grand Prix with a victory
that was pure kismet for all
those with a sense of the melodra-
ma and mischievous.
It was for Jason Crump, another
fair dinkum night for the Grand Prix
leader expanding the Aussie's lead
at the head of the series to a virtu-
ally unassailable 41 points.
It was for Bjarne Pedersen, back
on the rostrum in his home Grand
Prix - despite running a last place in
his first ride.
It was, too, for Danish speedway
in general, another big occasion and
big crowd inside Parken stadium,
finally hailing a home victor for the
first time in four years.
But the wonder of the night was
lost on some of the other protago-
nists, both major and minor.
Tony Rickardsson's fading star
was virtually erased from view with
another derisory display by his
superhuman standards.
Just five points was Rickardsson's
meager return and he now trails
Crump by 74, and the damage to
his historic bid for a record seventh
World Championship in his final
season in the sport is terminal.
It was 8:17 p.m. local time to be
precise when Rickardsson's last
hope finally perished. With only two
points from his opening two rides,
he ran a last in Heat 11 and was out
for the count.
Leigh Adams looked unbeatable
early on, reeling off four consum-
mate wins out of four in the quali-
fiers, but he then finished last in Heat
19 and lost out for second place in
the second semifinal to Antonio
Lindback when he appeared to be
thrown off line by a rut.
JULY 5, 2006 • C Y C L E N E W S
36
Wonderful Copenhagen?
Hans Anderson leads the final
in his home GP in Denmark
over Bjarne Pedersen and
Jason Crump.
Parken Stadium
Copenhagen, Denmark
Round 5
June 24, 2006
World Speedway Grand Prix Series
Wild card Hans Anderson takes the Danish Grand Prix
STORY AND PHOTOS BY JOHN HIPKISS
Greg Hancock
tries to get
hooked up to
pass Andreas
Jonnson.
