History maker

Racing at Poole, Dorset on Saturday, Becky took second place in the British U-13 Individual Championship Final.

In doing so, she broke 53 years of male domination of the sport of cycle speedway, by becoming the first female rider ever to finish in the top three of a British Individual Cycle Speedway Final, at any category.

She won three of her five races, and finished second in her other two when starting from the unfavourable outside start, to finish with 18 points.

Becky, a pupil at Fred Longworth High School, Tyldesley, started racing cycle speedway as a 10 year old, in 2001 at the Gin Pit circuit.

She looked the part from the outset and has steadily improved her racing. Last year, she won the Northern U-13 Grand Prix series, and in August this year, she won the Manchester League U-13 Individual title and the Manchester League U-13 Grand Prix series. Becky also smashed the all time record for an U-13 racer at the Gin Pit circuit by a full second in a recent training session.

So, Becky Heslop has gained a permanent place in the cycle speedway record books, ensuring that the club's sponsor, her father Roy, gets a unique return on his investment in the Astley & Tyldesley Miners' Welfare / CTA Direct Cycle Speedway Club.

Meanwhile, back at Gin Pit on Sunday, Astley & Tyldesley raced to an emphatic 91-57 win over Yorkshire rivals, Heckmondwike, in a Northern League encounter. A & T's Polish star Przemek Binkowski again raced unbeaten, with excellent scores from Frank Finnigan and Garry Pearce. For A & T, perhaps the most pleasing aspect was the excellent displays of the team's three second strings, Jeff Radcliffe, Warren Mee and Rob Longworth, who have all improved tremendously this summer. Their efforts ensured that A & T didn't run a single last place in the match. Heckmondwike battled gamely, with Darren Kent, James Carter and Gary Krelle all winning races.