Coronavirus: the Bahrain GP played behind closed doors

The Bahrain GP scheduled for March 22, a week after Australia, will be contested behind closed doors. This is the decision announced by the organizers of the race held on the Sakhir circuit in response to the coronavirus epidemic.

“In consultation with our international partners and the Kingdom's National Health Task Force, Bahrain has made the decision to continue to hold the Bahrain Grand Prix as a participants-only event. As host country of the F1, balancing the health of spectators and race fans is a huge responsibility”, explained the organizers in a press release.

“Due to the constant spread of Covid-19 all over the world, it would not be a good thing to organize a major sporting event open to the public which would allow thousands of foreign tourists and local fans to meet in close proximity close. »

“Bahrain’s actions to prevent, identify and isolate cases infected with Covid-19 have been very effective so far. The approach involved rapid and proactive measures, identifying infected individuals, the vast majority of whom arrived in the country by air. Very strict measures have been implemented to counter the spread of the virus, something that would be virtually impossible to maintain for the race. »

“We are aware of the disappointment of the public, particularly for those who had planned to attend this event, but safety remains our highest priority”, said the organizers.

Bahrain has recorded 85 cases since the start of the epidemic while more than a hundred thousand people have been affected by the coronavirus worldwide.