The Auto-Cycle Union is pleased to confirm the four riders that will represent TeamGB at the FIM Long Track of Nations battle in the Netherlands later this month, as the defending champions target back-to-back victories.
TeamGB arrive at Roden as the reigning Long Track of Nations champions after taking victory at Vechta, Germany in 2025. It was the ACU’s second success in the hotly-contested competition, following its breakthrough win in 2015.
Team boss Mitchel Godden, who has overseen both of TeamGB’s previous wins, has selected Chris ‘Bomber’ Harris, Zach Wajtknecht, James Shanes and Jake Mulford to represent the ACU on 20 September.
It’s a squad that combines international experience with proven success on the Roden circuit. Wajtknecht will race in the Netherlands as a double world champion, having won both individual and team honours in 2025. He also claimed his individual Long Track world title at Roden last year, giving him valuable recent experience at the venue.
Harris again brings a wealth of international racing experience to the squad and was the individual runner-up to Wajtknecht in 2025, while Shanes returns to the TeamGB line-up in place of Andrew Appleton who contributed to last year’s team success but is ruled out through injury this time around.
Shanes has represented Great Britain on several occasions and was part of the squad that secured TeamGB’s first victory in 2015.
Completing the four-rider squad is Jake Mulford who was crowned FIM Long Track Under-23 World Champion at Roden in May and continues to gain experience at senior international level.
Godden believes the make-up of the squad gives TeamGB the qualities required to challenge for back-to-back titles.
“The team has a mix of experience and youth, along with desire and passion to win and bring another title home to Great Britain,” he said. “We’re going there to race as hard as we can and to go for the gold.”
Godden, who has overseen both of TeamGB’s only successes at the Long Track of Nations, expects the opposition to be strong at Roden. He has pinpointed hosts The Netherlands, Germany and Denmark as the squads to beat.
“I think those are the main three teams we’ll be looking at,” he confirmed. “If you add us into that mix, I expect that three of those four teams will be on the podium. Hopefully TeamGB will be on the top step.”
The Long Track of Nations is a particularly significant event for Godden and his family as the championship trophy, officially known as the ‘Don Godden Long Track of Nations Trophy’, was commissioned and donated by the Godden family in 2013 and has since been adopted by the FIM as the event trophy.
Created in memory of Godden’s father, the trophy incorporates precious metal from medals he won during his own racing career in the 1960s and 1970s.
For Mitchel, that family connection adds another layer to an event in which he has already enjoyed considerable success as both a rider and manager.
“The event means a lot to me,” he said. “I’ve been part of the team as a rider, I’ve managed the team to both of our wins and there’s also that emotional connection with the trophy and my family.”