Thomas Lyte are proud to be the designers and makers of the Monster Energy FIM Speedway of Nations Trophy – one of the most challenging and unique events in the global motorsport calendar. As luxury silversmiths and elite sports trophy makers, we have enjoyed a lengthy partnership with the FIM, the international governing body of motorsport, and were commissioned in 2018 to produce a trophy to mark the first World Championship event in a pairs format since 1998.
The result is a stunning trophy which reflects both the excitement of the event itself and the bold ambitions of the FIM to continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in international speedway, with their passion and drive very much in keeping with the attitude that underpins everything we do here at Thomas Lyte. The competition, which aims to promote young riders by including one under the age of 21 in each team of three, pits speedway’s leading nations against each other in a thrilling format.
First won by Russia, this contemporary piece of silverware, expertly hand-crafted at our London workshop, has been presented to the winners of the Speedway of Nations every year since.
“FIH have created a spectacular product that is disrupting the market, an approach that we at Thomas Lyte passionately support,” said Andrew Jones, director at Thomas Lyte. “The Speedway of Nations is a competition that is taking the sport to an entirely new level and we believe our trophy is a true reflection of that ambition.”
The Speedway of Nations, like the riders who travel at high speed around the track without the use of brakes, is a show-stopper, with Thomas Lyte’s designers working hand-in-hand with the FIM to create one of motorsports stand-out trophies.
Standing at 55cm tall, the trophy features a hand-engraved golden globe emerging from the body of a trophy which has a hand-cut opening on either side. These slits reveal a black anodiser aluminium stem, adorned by two separate beautifully hand-crafted spiralling sheets of metal. These have been incorporated to demonstrate the unique nature of the event, and illustrate the path to glory for the two winning riders.
With four of our experienced and passionate silversmiths and goldsmiths working tirelessly over a 12 week period, the trophy was gradually brought to life. Following its intricate assembly, the trophy was plated with 20 microns of sterling silver and two microns of 18 carat gold – a process completed in our London workshop using Thomas Lyte’s state-of-the-art electroplating tanks. Once the plating was in place, the trophy was painstakingly hand polished to a stunning finish before undergoing a stringent series of checks by our quality control team.
Like so many high-profile pieces of silverware, the Speedway of Nations is a trophy in demand away from the track as well as on it. This means it regularly returns to our London workshop for repairs which may vary from a slight dent to more significant damage. Thomas Lyte’s intimate knowledge of the trophy, though, means our team of specialists are always on hand to restore it to its originally stunning finish, using age-old and trusted techniques learned through decades of experience.
The Speedway Nations Cup is the first time a pairs format has been used to decide the world’s pre-eminent speedway country in a generation – but the competition’s roots go back far further. The original incarnation, the FIM Speedway Team World Cup, celebrated its inception in 1960 and led to a boom in the sport’s global popularity. Held annually at some of speedway’s most iconic locations, including Wembley and Long Beach, the competition eventually morphed into the Speedway World Cup, which celebrated its launch in 2001.
The World Cup traditionally lasted for a week, featuring the world’s leading speedway nations and including four or five race days. This format lasted until 2017, with the final World Cup taking place in Poland, who won the title in front of their home crowd.
Since then the Speedway Nations Cup has taken on the mantle and continued the sport’s evolution at even greater speed. Under the new format, each country has a team of three riders, including one under the age of 21. Each race takes place between two countries, with the combined points tally of the riders deciding the outcome. It’s a fascinating duel on two wheels and one that has led to some epic confrontations since the trophy was awarded for the first time in 2018 in the Polish city of Wroclaw.
Thomas Lyte enjoys close links with a range of motor sports, having designed and made trophies for the World Speedway Grand Prix and the World Rallycross Championship. We are also the official restorers of the fabled British Grand Prix Trophy.
