Spanish track 'to oust racists'
Tuesday, 05 Feb 2008 12:43
Organisers claim action will be taken against racist fans who taunted Lewis Hamilton at the weekend
Officials at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya have unveiled new security measures to prevent a repeat of the racist abuse suffered by Lewis Hamilton.
Over the weekend the Spanish racetrack was the scene of disturbing abuse targeted at British F1 star Hamilton, who is something of a hate figure in the Iberian nation.
Reports from Spain suggested the 23-year-old was roundly booed by sections of the stands at the Circuit de Catalunya.
And television pictures showed some spectators wearing blackface and dressed in crude outfits bearing the slogan 'Hamilton's family'.
Hamilton said he was "saddened" by the experience, and following calls for sanctions against the Spanish F1 organisers over their failure to properly police the testing event the circuit issued a wide-ranging statement.
It said the majority of the 55,000 fans that attended had "a general attitude of respectful and excellent behaviour".
But it added: "We strongly support the FIA's position with regards to fighting against all racial, political or religious discrimination in motor sport.
"The Circuit de Catalunya will not allow even the smallest incident to repeat itself within its facilities, and new measures are currently being taken into consideration in addition to those implemented during the latest sessions.
"These measures have been studied with the support of the Catalan police and the circuit's security services, and they will be reinforced in the upcoming test sessions."
The organisers have also threatened legal action against the fans who were involved, should the circuit or Spanish F1 be subjected to sanctions.
"The Spanish grand prix represents the image of a country in the world and the Circuit de Catalunya will not accept any abuse of this image through racist attitudes or attacks on sporting competitions," the statement concluded.
"The circuit requests the grand prix to be the genuine meeting point for all the different supporters of drivers and teams in our sport, especially to represent the values of our country."