Motorsports
Formula 1: Saudi Arabian GP overshadowed by fears of rocket attacks on Jeddah
The organizers of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix announced in the next three days that the second race of this year in Formula 1 will be held as normal – despite the recent ballistic missile attacks by the Houthis in Yemen.
Yemeni Houthi rebels have stepped up their recent attacks in Saudi Arabia. In the early morning hours of last Sunday (March 20), just a few hours before the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Bahrain, ballistic missiles were fired at the fuel tanks of state oil giant Saudi Aramco in Jeddah.
At the same time, they conducted at least five other drone strikes on other critical water and energy assets – such as the Aramco refinery in Jizan and liquefied natural gas tanks in Yanbu – Saudi Arabia.
Although organizing a sporting event is the least of the problems and Aramco has strong sponsorship activity in the Arab GPs and Formula 1, the organizers of the race in Jeddah issued a statement on Sunday (27/3) that appeared reassuring about the hosting of the GP.
Their announcement states: “This incident has no impact on the three-day game. As always, the safety of our guests remains our first priority. “We are in constant contact with the relevant authorities and all necessary measures have been taken to ensure the safety of all visitors to the Formula 1 GP of Saudi Arabia and the staff and journalists involved.”
According to Reuters, citing Saudi media sources, the country’s air force has located and neutralized nine drones, one of which was flying to Jeddah, and 106 boats with explosives in the southern part of the Red Sea.
Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.