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Civic honour for world champions

Posted onPosted on 4th Dec

The mayor of Mansfield, Kate Allsop, invited brothers, Tom and Ben Birchall to a civic event to celebrate their world-class achievements in sidecar racing.

The Mansfield duo claimed the world championship for a third time in 2017 and won the Isle of Mann TT races too, making them the only sidecar team in history to win both prestigious titles in the same year.

The pair were also the Southern hundred race winners and British Championship runners up, making 2017 their most successful year to date.

After already being awarded Freedom of the district in 2009, the highest honour the town can give to its citizens, when they won their first world championship title, the mayor wanted the council to provide the brothers with a celebratory evening to congratulate them on their outstanding achievements.

At the evening there was a civic procession, led by Coun David Smith, chairman of the Charter of the Trustees, who carried the golden mace, followed by a question and answer interview.

Kate Allsop said: “The boys have done Mansfield proud yet again and I wanted to give them an evening to remember so that we could celebrate their achievements together.

“We are immensely proud of Ben and Tom and would like to thank them for all of their commitment and hard work.”

Ben said: “We are so grateful to have this civic reception in recognition of our success on the track and can’t thank our supporters, friends and family enough for being behind us all the way.

“We are just local lads who have a passion for our sport and hope many other youngsters can follow in our footsteps.”