1980 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1980 Individual Speedway World Championship was the 35th edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

1980 Individual Speedway World Championship

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1979

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1981

With the defending Ivan Mauger failing to qualify for a World Final for the first time since 1966, and Ole Olsen only qualifying as a reserve, the 1980 World Final at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden was seen as an open final with a number of potential winners. Michael Lee, Bruce Penhall, Dave Jessup and Billy Sanders considered the favourites with Jan Andersson (the only Swedish rider in the World Final), John Davis, Hans Nielsen, Zenon Plech, Chris Morton and Peter Collins all expected to challenge.

Twenty-one-year-old English ace Lee who had only finished 7th in the Intercontinental Final at White City, won his only World Championship with 14 points from his 5 rides. Dave Jessup finished second after defeating Billy Sanders in a runoff when both riders finished on 12 points to give England a 1-2 finish in a World Final.

Michael Lee became only the fifth rider from Great Britain to win speedway's ultimate individual prize, joining Welshman Freddie Williams (1950), and fellow Englishmen Tommy Price (1949), Peter Craven (1955 & 1962) and Peter Collins (1976) as a speedway world champion.

First round

^[7][8]

British Qualification

Date	Venue	Winner	2nd	3rd
Preliminary Round
8 April	Milton Keynes Stadium, Milton Keynes	Mike Lanham	Rob Hollingworth	David Kennett
9 April	Long Eaton Stadium, Long Eaton	Dave Perks	Dave Morton	Paul Woods
11 April	East of England Arena, Peterborough	Andy Hines	Nicky Allott	Nigel Flatman
11 April	Ellesmere Port Stadium, Ellesmere Port	Peter Prinsloo	Derek Richardson	David Gagen
13 April	Rye House Stadium, Hoddesdon	Melvyn Taylor	Bob Garrad	Ian Clark
Quarter-Final
27 April	The Shay, Halifax	Mike Lanham	Kevin Hawkins	Dave Morton

Second round

Swedish qualification

• Top 5 in each heat to Swedish final

(4 May, Målilla (Motorbana) Målilla) Pos Rider Points 1 Tommy Johansson 15 2 Tommy Nilsson 14 3 Conny Samuelsson 11 4 Bengt Jansson 11 5 Gert Carlsson 11 6 Per-Ove Gudmundsson 10+3 7 Stefan Salmonsson 10+2 8 Tommy Steen 8 9 Kalle Lindgren 8 10 Torgil Roth 4 11 Peter Carlsson 4 12 Willy Karlsson 3 13 Leif Bergqvist (res) 3 14 Bertil Andersson (res) 3 15 Glenn Andersson 2 16 Lars-Ove Lundgren 1 17 Alf Trofast 0 18 Sven-Erik Andersson 0

(4 May, Gislaved Motorbana Gislaved) Pos Rider Points 1 Anders Michanek 15 2 Bo Wirebrand 13 3 Hans Danielsson 12 4 Lillebror Johansson 12 5 Bengt Gustavsson 12 6 Karl-Erik Claesson 10 7 Thomas Hydling 9 8 Benny Ekberg 8 9 Lennart Bengtsson 6 10 Åke Axelsson 6 11 Börje Ring 5 12 Åke Fridell 4 13 Weine Ström 4 14 Anders Eriksson 2 15 Thomas Engman 2 16 Kent Bäär 0

(8 May, Linköping Motorstadion Linköping) Pos Rider Points 1 Bernt Persson 15 2 Richard Hellsén 14 3 Börje Klingberg 12 4 Jan Ericsson 11 5 Rolf Sundberg 11 6 Uno Johansson 10 7 Jan Davidsson 10 8 Ingemar Andersson 8 9 Christer Nilsson 6 10 Sören Karlsson 5 11 Kent Eriksson 5 12 Peter Johansson 4 13 Anders Törnström 4 14 Ragnar Holm 3 15 Göran Waltersson 2 16 Bo Åstrand 1 17 Leif Andersson 0

Continental Preliminary round

Date	Venue	Winner	2nd	3rd
19 April	Ellermühle Stadium, Landshut	Egon Muller	Waldemar Bacik	Edward Jancarz
20 April	Polonia Bydgoszcz Stadium, Bydgoszcz	Zdeněk Kudrna	Jerzy Rembas	Marek Ziarnik
20 April	Giavera del Montello, Treviso	Milan Špinka	Václav Verner	Herbert Szerecz
20 April	Speedway Žarnovica, Žarnovica	Petr Ondrašík	Jan Hadek	Petr Kučera

Australian Final 26 January 1980 Sydney Showground, Sydney First 9 to Australasian Final Pos. Rider Total 1 Billy Sanders 15 2 Phil Crump 12+3 3 John Titman 12+2 4 Steve Koppe 10 5 Mike Farrell 10 6 Phil Herne 10 7 Glyn Taylor 9 8 Glenn McDonald 9 9 Keith Wright 7 10 Rob Maxfield 6 11 Peter Collins 4 12 Lou Sansom 3 13 Danny Kennedy 2 14 Rob Moores 2 15 Alan Lorymer 2 16 Dean Van Bibra 1

New Zealand Final 2 February 1980 Western Springs Stadium, Auckland First 7 to Australasian Final Pos. Rider Heat Scores Total 1 Larry Ross 3,3,2,3,3 14 2 David Bargh 3,3,3,3,2 14 3 Tony Briggs 2,3,2,2,3 12 4 Graeme Stapleton 3,2,3,2,1 11 5 Mitch Shirra 1,3,1,3,3 11 6 Wayne Brown 3,2,3,3,- 11 7 Mike Fullerton 2,1,1,2,3 9 8 Colin Tucker 2,0,2,1,2 7 9 Roger Wright 1,2,3,1,0 7 10 Max Brown 0,2,2,1,1 6 11 Neil Abrahams 2,1,0,0,2 5 12 Greg Joynt 1,1,1,2,x 5 13 Colin Farquharson 1,F,0,0,2 3 14 Greame Beardsley 0,F,1,-,- 1 15 Paul Fewings F,1,F,-,- 1 16 James Moore E,0,-,-,- 0 R1 William Aulsfold 0,0,1,1 2 R2 Roger Pauling 0,0 0

British semi-finals

21 May Wimborne Road, Poole Top 8 to British final Pos. Rider Points 1 Peter Collins 15 2 Gordon Kennett 13 3 Kevin Jolly 13 4 Reg Wilson 10 5 John Davis 9 6 John Louis 9 7 Melvyn Taylor 8 8 Mike Lanham 7 9 Alan Grahame 7 10 Kevin Hawkins 6 11 Nigel Flatman 6 12 Roger Johns 6 13 Paul Woods 6 14 Alan Molyneux 0 15 Jim McMillan 0

22 May Owlerton Stadium, Sheffield Top 8 to British final Pos. Rider Points 1 Dave Jessup 14 2 Chris Morton 11 3 Dave Morton 11 4 Peter Prinsloo 11 5 Michael Lee 9 6 Bobby Beaton 9 7 Ian Cartwright 8 8 Phil Collins 8 9 Les Collins 7 10 Kenny Carter 7 11 Steve Bastable 7 12 Joe Owen 6 13 Malcolm Simmons 6 14 Andy Grahame 3 15 Bobby Garrad 2 16 Ian Clark 1

Third round

Continental quarter-finals

• Top 32 to Continental semi-finals

Date	Venue	Winner	2nd	3rd
3 May	Slaný Speedway Stadium, Slaný	Mikhail Starostin	Jiří Štancl	Jan Verner
4 May	Mladost Stadium, Prelog	Henny Kroeze	Václav Verner	Milan Špinka
4 May	Stadion Wiener Neustadt	Zdeněk Kudrna	Jerzy Rembas	Piotr Pyszny

Swedish Final

• 20 May 1980
• Norrköping Motorstadion, Norrköping
• Winner to World Final, riders 2–5 to Nordic Final

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos
	(13) Jan Andersson	13				2	3							3		2					3		13	1
	(15) Richard Hellsen	12				3			3			3						X	3				12	2
	(2) Tommy Johansson	12	2					3				2				3				2			12	3
4	(8) Anders Michanek	11		3						3			2			1			2				11	4
5	(14) Bernt Persson	11				1		2					3		2							3	11	5
6	(9) Bengt Jansson	10			1		2						1					3		3			10	6
7	(11) Tommy Nilsson	9			2				2		3					0						2	9	7
8	(16) Borje Klingberg	7				0				1	2						3			1			7	8
9	(1) Hans Danielsson	7	1				1				1				3				1				7	9
10	(10) Rolf Sundberg	6			3			X						1			2		0				6	10
11	(6) Per-Ove Gundmundsson	6		2				1			0							1			2		6	11
12	(4) Bo Wirebrand	5	3							0				2				X				-	5	12
13	(7) Conny Samuelsson	3		1					1					0	1					0			3	13
14	(12) Lillebror Johansson	2			0					2		E			-						-		2	14
15	(5) Bengt Gustavsson	1		0			0					1					0					0	1	15
16	(3) Jan Eriksson	0	E						F				F				-				-		0	16
R1	(R1) Karl-Erik Claesson	4													0			2			1	1	4	R1
R2	(R2) Uno Johansson	1															1				0		1	R2
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside

Finland Final

• Eteläpuisto, Tampere
• 27 August 1979, top 3 to 1980 Nordic final

Pos.	Rider	Total
1	Kai Niemi	12
2	Ilkka Teromaa	9
3	Veijo Tuoriniemi	9
4	Ari Koponen	8
5	Seppo Palomaki	8
6	Olli Turkia	8
7	Esko Myllari	8
8	Timo Kiansten	7
9	Pekka Hautamaki	6
10	Hannu Lehtonen	6
11	Heimo Kaikko	4
12	Markku Haapala	4
13	Veli Pekka Kunelius	3
14	Olli Tyrvainen	3
15	Ismo Kivela	2
16	Jarmo Puttonen	0
17	Matti Hyyrylainen (res)	0

Danish Final

• 4 May 1980
• Fredericia Speedway Stadium, Fredericia
• First 3 to Nordic final (Olsen, Nielsen & Thomsen seeded through)

Pos.	Rider	Total
1	Bo Petersen	15
2	Preben Eriksen	13
3	Bent Rasmussen	12+3
4	Finn Rune Jensen	12+2
5	Finn Thomsen	10
6	Mike Lohmann	8
7	Alf Busk	8
8	Jens Henry Nielsen	7
9	Lars Vinding	6
10	Arne Cruse	6
11	Gunnar Hansen	6
12	Finn Lundahl	5
13	Steen Mastrup	5
14	Hans Ove Cristiansen	3
15	Svend Lund	3
16	Gunnar Svendsen	1

Norwegian Final

• 18 May 1980
• Geiteryggen Speedwaybane, Skien
• First 3 to Nordic final

Pos.	Rider	Total
1	Reidar Eide	14
2	Audun Ove Olsen	13
3	Rolf Gramstad	12+3
4	Dag Haaland	12+2
5	Trond Helge Skretting	10
6	Terje Tollefsen	8
7	Sigvart Pedersen	7
8	Kjell Gimre	7
9	Jon Hovind	6
10	Roy Otto	6
11	Jorn Haugvaldstad	6
12	Toralf Holen	6
13	Asgeir Bjerga	4
14	Geir Aasland	4
15	Rolf Havirstad	2
16	Dagvinn Jorgensen	2

Australasian Final

• 2 February 1980
• Ruapuna Speedway, Christchurch
• First 5 to Commonwealth Final plus 1 reserve
• Ivan Mauger seeded to Commonwealth final

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos	21
	(10) Billy Sanders	15			3			3						3			3		3				15	1
	(1) John Titman	13	3				3				2				3				2				13	2
	(16) Larry Ross	12				3				3	3						2			1			12	3
4	(2) Mitch Shirra	12	2					2				3				3				2			12	4
5	(4) Phil Crump	11	1							2				2				3				3	11	5	3
6	(7) Tony Briggs	11		2					3					1	2					3			11	6	2
7	(6) Mike Farrell	10		3				1			1							2			3		10	7
8	(14) Phil Herne	8				2		0					3		1							2	8	8
9	(3) Steve Koppe	7	0						2				2				1				2		7	9
10	(11) Glyn Taylor	5			2				1		0					2						0	5	10
11	(5) Gleen McDonald	5		0			2					2					0					1	5	11
12	(15) Graeme Stapleton	3				1			0			0						1	1				3	12
13	(13) Keith Wright	2				0	1							0		0					1		2	13
14	(9) David Bargh	2			1		0						1					0		0			2	14
15	(8) Mike Fullerton	2		1						0			0			1			0				2	15
16	(12) Wayne Brown	1			0					1		0			0						0		1	16
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos	21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside

British Final

• 4 June 1980
• Brandon Stadium, Coventry
• First 10 to Commonwealth Final plus 1 reserve

Pos.	Rider	Heat Scores	Total
1	Dave Jessup	(3,3,3,3,3)	15
2	Michael Lee	(3,3,3,3,2)	14
3	Phil Collins	(1,2,2,3,3)	11
4	Peter Collins	(3,3,0,3,1)	10
5	Gordon Kennett	(2,2,2,2,2)	10
6	John Louis	(3,1,3,1,1)	9
7	John Davis	(X,2,1,2,3)	8
8	Chris Morton	(0,1,1,2,3)	7
9	Melvyn Taylor	(2,1,X,2,2)	7
10	Reg Wilson	(2,2,1,1,0)	6+3
11	Bobby Beaton	(0,1,3,0,2)	6+2
12	Ian Cartwright	(1,0,2,1,1)	5
13	Dave Morton	(1,3,0,0,0)	4
14	Kevin Jolly	(2,0,1,0,1)	4
15	Peter Prinsloo	(2,1,0,1,0)	4
16	Mike Lanham	(0,0,0,0,0)	0

Fourth round

Continental semi-finals

25 May Motodrom Halbemond, Norden Top 8 to Continental final Pos. Rider Points 1 Jiří Štancl 14 2 Edward Jancarz 12 3 Petr Ondrašík 11 4 Andrzej Huszcza 11 5 Egon Müller 10 6 Zenon Plech 10 7 Nikolaj Kornev 9 8 Michail Starostin 9 9 Waldemar Bacik 8 10 Petr Kucera 6 11 Roman Jankowski 5 12 Valerij Gordeev 4 13 Jan Hadek 4 14 Jan Verner 3 15 Ladislav Hradecky 2 16 Zytun Gafurov 1

25 May Targovishte Speedway Stadium, Targovishte Top 8 to Continental final Pos. Rider Points 1 Zdenek Kudrna 13 2 Václav Verner 13 3 Aleš Dryml Sr. 11 4 Jerzy Rembas 10 5 Milan Špinka 9 6 Andy Cusworth 6 7 Wojciech Zabialowicz 8+3 8 Georg Hack 8+2 9 Henny Kroeze 8+1 10 Herbert Szerecz 7 11 Grigory Khlinovsky 7 12 Sergej Denisov 6 13 Piotr Pyszny 4 14 Walter Grubmüller 3 15 Frits Koppe 1 16 Marek Ciarnik (res) 0

Commonwealth Final

• 29 June 1980
• Wimbledon Stadium, London
• First 9 to Intercontinental Final plus 1 reserve

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos	21
	(2) Dave Jessup	14	3					2				3				3				3			14	1
	(14) John Louis	13				2		3					2		3							3	13	2
	(3) Ivan Mauger	12	2						3				1				3				3		12	3
4	(8) John Davis	11		1						2			3			2			3				11	4
5	(9) Billy Sanders	10			3		3						0					3		1			10	5
6	(4) Chris Morton	11	0							3				3				3				2	11	6
7	(5) Michael Lee	9		3			2					2					1					1	9	7
8	(7) Mitch Shirra	9		2					2					1	2					2			9	8
9	(10) Peter Collins	7			1			0						3			2		1				7	9
10	(15) Gordon Kennett	6				3			1			1						1	0				6	10	3
11	(1) Larry Ross	6	1				1				1				1				2				6	11	E
12	(12) Phil Collins	5			2					1		0			0						2		5	12
13	(6) John Titman	4		0				1			3							0			E		4	13
14	(11) Melvyn Taylor	3			F				0		2					1						0	3	14
15	(13) Phil Crump	2				1	0							0		0					1		2	15
16	(16) Reg Wilson	0				0				0	0						0			0			0	16
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos	21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside

American Final

• 16 November 1979
• Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim
• First 2 to Intercontinental Final

Pos.	Rider	Total
1	Bruce Penhall	14
2	Scott Autrey	13+3
3	Dennis Sigalos	13+2
4	Ron Preston	13+1
5	Shawn Moran	10
6	Gene Woods	10
7	John Cook	9
8	Mike Faria	7
9	Bobby Schwartz	5
10	Alan Christian	5
11	Denny Pyeatt	5
12	Duane Yarrow	5
13	Brad Oxley	4
14	John Santona	4
15	Dan McNeill	3
16	Kelly Moran	1
17	Larry Kosta	0

Nordic Final

• 15 June 1980
• Geiteryggen Speedwaybane, Skien
• First 5 to Intercontinental Final

Pos.	Rider	Total
1	Hans Nielsen	15
2	Ole Olsen	14
3	Finn Thomsen	13
4	Bent Rasmussen	12
5	Kai Niemi	10
6	Ila Teromaa	8
7	Bo Petersen	8
8	Hans Danielsson	7
9	Tommy Johansson	7
10	Preben Eriksen	6
11	Rolf Gramstad	5
12	Bernt Persson	5
13	Veijo Tyoriniemi	4
14	Audun Ove Olsen	2
15	Reidar Eide	1
16	Bengt Jansson	0

Fifth round

Continental Final

• 27 July 1980
• Santa Marina Stadium, Lonigo
• First 5 to World Final plus 1 reserve

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos
	(16) Zenon Plech	14				3				3	3						3			2			14	1	3
	(13) Jiří Štancl	14				2	3							3		3					3		14	2	2
	(7) Aleš Dryml Sr.	12		1					3					2	3					3			12	3
4	(1) Egon Müller	11	3				1				2				2				3				11	4
5	(5) Petr Ondrašík	11		2			2					2					2					3	11	5
6	(6) Václav Verner	9		3				1			1							2			2		9	6
7	(4) Mikhail Starostin	7	2							2				F				3				E	7	7
8	(8) Jerzy Rembas	7		X						1			3			1			2				7	8
9	(14) Georg Hack	7				1		2					2		F							2	7	9
10	(11) Milan Špinka	6			3				2		0					0						1	6	10
11	(10) Zdeněk Kudrna	6			X			3						1			1		1				6	11
12	(2) Andrzej Huszcza	6	F					E				3				2				1			6	12
13	(3) Andy Cusworth	3	1						0				1				0				1		3	13
14	(12) Wojciech Żabiałowicz	2			1					0		0			1						F		2	14
15	(15) Nikolay Kornev	2				0			1			1						E	F				2	15
16	(9) Edward Jancarz	0			F		-						-					-					0	16
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside

Intercontinental Final

• 3 August 1980
• White City Stadium, London
• First 10 to World Final plus 1 reserve

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos
	(1) Chris Morton	12	2				1				3				3				3				12	1	3
	(5) Bruce Penhall	12		3			3					1					3					2	12	2	2
	(15) Billy Sanders	11				1			3			3						2	2				11	3	3
4	(3) Kai Niemi	11	3						2				2				1				3		11	4	2
5	(16) Finn Thomsen	10				2				2	1						2			3			10	5
6	(8) Dave Jessup	9		2						3			E			3			1				9	6
7	(13) Michael Lee	9				3	0							3		1					2		9	7
8	(9) John Davis	9			1		2						3					1		2			9	8
9	(4) Hans Nielsen	8	1							1				X				3				3	8	9
10	(2) Peter Collins	7	0					3				2				2				0			7	10
11	(7) Ole Olsen	6		1					1					2	1					1			6	11
12	(11) Scott Autrey	6			3				0		2					0						1	6	12
13	(14) Ivan Mauger	5				0		2					1		2							0	5	13
14	(12) John Louis	3			2					0		0			0						1		3	14
15	(6) Mitch Shirra	1		0				1			0							0			0		1	15
16	(10) Bent Leif Rasmussen	0			0			0						X			E		-				0	16
R1	(R1) Gordon Kennett	0																	0				0	R1
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside

World Final

• 5 September 1980
• Ullevi, Gothenburg^[9]
• Referee: () Torrie Kittlesen
• Attendance: 35,000 (approx)

Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos	21
	(9) Michael Lee	14			2		3						3					3		3			14	1
	(10) Dave Jessup	12			3			2						2			2		3				12	2	3
	(13) Billy Sanders	12				3	1							3		2					3		12	3	2
4	(5) Jan Andersson	11		3			0					2					3					3	11	4
5	(1) Bruce Penhall	9	3				2				1				1				2				9	5
6	(2) John Davis	9	2					1				1				3				2			9	6
7	(11) Peter Collins	8			1				3		3					1						0	8	7
8	(12) Kai Niemi	8			0					1		3			2						2		8	8
9	(7) Chris Morton	8		2					1					1	3					1			8	9
10	(14) Finn Thomsen	7				2		3					1		0							1	7	10
11	(4) Hans Nielsen	7	1							2				0				2				2	7	11
12	(8) Aleš Dryml Sr.	5		0						3			2			0			0				5	12
13	(15) Jiří Štancl	5				1			2			0						1	1				5	13
14	(6) Egon Muller	4		1				0			2							E			1		4	14
15	(16) Zenon Plech	1				E				0	0						1			0			1	15
16	(3) Petr Ondrašík	0	0						0				0				0				0		0	16
R1	(R1) Ole Olsen	0																					0	R1
R2	(R2) Václav Verner	0																					0	R2
R3	(R3) Hans Danielsson	0																					0	R3
Placing	Rider	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pts	Pos	21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside

gate B

gate C

gate D - outside