Vietnam’s Grand Prix must be financially sustainable

Hoàng Anh My first experience with a Grand Prix was back in 2008 when I was a student in Montreal, Canada. The Canadian Grand Pix took place in June with it came a real summer festive atmosphere. Long before the race even began, the parties took place in downtown with race cars parading on Montreal’s old streets with thousands of tourists flocking to the city for the attraction. The Formula One race is said to be an unforgettable experience: the crowd, the cars, the heat and the sound of tires. Never had I imagined that ten years later there would be a plan in place to bring the F1 race to my hometown Hà Nội. I have been watching the developments in suspense, not knowing for sure it will become a reality until it was officially confirmed on Wednesday. A 5.565km track is to be set up in the area of Mỹ Đình sport complex. There was talk that the race may take place in downtown, near the Old Quarter and many of the city’s relic sites and historical buildings. I am, for one, glad that they changed the location of the race. While there are benefits to the promotion of the city’s iconic buildings and images, ensuring the race safety and managing traffic in such a heavily populated area may well prove a challenge too difficult to overcome. The Mỹ Đình sport complex, by comparison, is relatively easier to manage with a much smaller population and mostly modern infrastructure…. [Read full story]