ŻUŻEL/NEWS/M2E: A Completely New EAGLE – Profiles of the Łódź Team Riders

After the 2024 season, EAGLE Łódź was uncertain about its future, and the club’s participation in the league competition structures was in doubt. Ultimately, the team will compete for promotion to the PGE Ekstraliga, and it will be represented by five new seniors and one new junior. Who are they?

• For the 2025 season of METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga, Patrick Hansen, Vaclav Milik, Patryk Wojdyło, Robert Chmiel, Andreas Lyager, and Olivier Buszkiewicz have decided to join EAGLE Łódź.
• Besides the riders, new management members have joined the club. Jan Konikiewicz has become the managing director, and Jakub Zborowski the vice president of the board.
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Vaclav Milik – currently one of the best and, crucially, one of the most experienced Czech speedway riders. He joined EAGLE Łódź from Krosno. The 31-year-old spent four years with the Podkarpacie club, one of which was in the PGE Ekstraliga. “I believe that Vaclav had a beautiful history with the CELLFAST WILKS, but after some modifications to the lineup, we decided to part ways, which was difficult as he wasn’t just any player of the club,” said Michał Finfa, the club director from Krosno.

The previous season started off well for the speedway rider, but the effort was marred by a disastrous fall in the quarter-final match against the Rybnik team. The injury sustained prevented him from finishing the season, and later, it turned out that it was not the only thing complicating his recovery. Ultimately, the Czech became the nineteenth speedway rider of METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga in the 2024 season.

Andreas Lyager – for the Dane, EAGLE Łódź will be the fifth club in his career. His adventure in Poland began 9 years ago in Częstochowa. His last club, where he spent the most time, was ABRAMCZYK POLONIA Bydgoszcz. Lyager reached the finals with his team last season and individually had his second-best year on the METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga level. He finished the competitions in eleventh place in the ranking of average race points with a score of 2.076 points/race. In 2024, during a league match in Łódź, he was the joint leader of his team, scoring 10 points with one bonus.

Robert Chmiel – a product of INNPRO ROW Rybnik, he was originally supposed to join the rival EAGLE – ABRAMCZYK POLONIA Bydgoszcz, but due to a series of events, Chmiel will indeed be seen in Łódź. The 26-year-old spent his last two seasons in the National Speedway League with the Opole club, where he was a leader, and in 2024, he became the third-best rider in the league. Chmiel had the opportunity to show his skills at last year’s SEC tournament at the Silesian Stadium in Chorzów, where he sensationally made it to the playoff round, defeating, among others, Leon Madsen and Maciej Janowski. Ultimately, the Pole finished those competitions in sixth place.

Patrick Hansen – another Dane in the EAGLE squad, this time coming to Łódź from Rybnik. He spent two years with the INNPRO ROW, but due to a dreadful injury sustained in the 2023 season, whose effects he still feels, he did not appear on the track in the 2024 league competitions. Previously, Hansen represented, among others, STAL Gorzów, with which he claimed a silver medal in the Polish Team Championships three seasons ago, and ARGED MALESA Ostrów Wlkp., where he had the best season of his career in 2021, achieving an average of 2.057 points/race at the second league level in Poland.

Patryk Wojdyło – next to Vaclav Milik, the second senior moving to EAGLE Łódź from the CELLFAST WILKS. The product of TEXOM STAL Rzeszów spent three years in Krosno, with a two-year break for stints with INNPRO ROW Rybnik. Last season, the 25-year-old scored 71 points in 57 outings in the METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga, marking his third-best year at this level in the country. Interestingly, Wojdyło doesn’t stop at racing in Poland. He also competes in the British league and has already won two titles of the Individual Champion of Argentina.

Mateusz Bartkowiak – the only senior on the EAGLE, who has already had appearances with the Łódź club. For Bartkowiak, this will be his first season as an under-24 player. In 2024, the product of STAL Gorzów became the third most effective junior in METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga, with a score of 1.459 points/race.

Olivier Buszkiewicz – the second speedway rider switching from ABRAMCZYK POLONIA Bydgoszcz to EAGLE Łódź. For Buszkiewicz, it’s the last season as a junior. The previous one, which was also the best in his career, he finished in 45th place in the average race point rankings.

Seweryn Orgacki – the second junior in the EAGLE lineup. Despite being 20 years old, he has already represented three clubs, and Łódź is his fourth stop. Last season, in the METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga, Orgacki participated in only six races, scoring two points with one bonus.

Marcin Rusewicz