He was the first Polish junior world champion. After winning the tournament with maximum points in 1996, in German Olching, the doors to the phenomental career got opened. How does Piotr Protasiewicz reminisce on that day?
- It was an incredible day for me. I remember it very well, because I got the gold as the first Pole in the history. I was preparing for a long time to this meeting. I even bought a new engine, came to Germany with huge team. There was Tommy Knudsen with me, Andrzej Rusko, my dad, brother and few other people that were supporting me.
Generally, I couldn't sleep before the meeting, there were some big nerves. Engine that I put before the official practice didn't fit and mechanic had to take it to work on it. It has to be said that at these times, there was a constant struggle for equipment and new stuff. Not it changed a bit (laugh).
I got my engine only an hour before the meeting. I didn't have a chance to test it earlier. I just jumpet on it and raced in the meeting. I remember there were lots of fans from Zielona Góra and Wrocław, where I was racing at that time. Before the first heat, I didn't even think about the win. I wanted to find a quick and right setup for this track and fight in the further phase. Luckily, everything worked out perfectly, got the maximum, which was a huge achievement back then. Especially, while looking at the line up. Surely, it was a beautiful moment, because this triumph opened a gate for a different speedway world. Junior World Champion had an auto-promotion to the senior championship and then you could notice the difference between the Polish and foreign riders. After the meeting, there was some long negotiation process about buying it, many nerves, but after all it was a great day.
Is the tournament formula better than a one-day meeting?
- Honestly, both solutions have their pros and cons. During the one-day meeting, you cannot let yourself make even a small mistake. On the other hand, every engine failure cause that your chances decrease drastically. In few rounds, you can catch up your fails. It's really hard for me to say, which solution is better. Like I said, both have its advantages.
How does Protasiewicz see Krystian Pieszczek's chances, who will fight for twelfth gold medal for Poland?
- Krystian is the favourite. He's racing at his home track, he knows how it reacts at every time of the day.
I think he's able to reach for gold.
