7,500 spectators authorized for the Monaco Grand Prix
The Monaco Grand Prix, the fifth meeting of the World Championship this year on May 23, will be held with 7,500 spectators, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The government of the Principality of Monaco announced it on Tuesday.
Each spectator will have passed a PCR test, the result of which must be negative. But residents, employees of the Principality and Monegasques will be trained. There will be no restriction on the origin of the audience.
The first GP of the year with so many people
” It is both important (than the Grand Prix) be held with minimal public participation and in unquestionable sanitary conditions, declared Pierre Dartout, Minister of State of Monaco. We are all attached to ensuring that it takes place in the best possible conditions, both for what it represents economically, particularly in the hotel and catering sector, but also for the image of the Principality. “
It will be the first GP of the season to be held with so many audiences, as F1 has been evolving under a bubble since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
This year, a few spectators vaccinated or cured of Covid-19 were present for the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 28. The GPs of Emilia-Romagna and Portugal were held behind closed doors. The Spanish Grand Prix is to welcome 1,000 people on Sunday.
Canceled last year, the Monaco GP sold “ already 4,000 tickets », Declared Christian Tornatore, commissioner general of the Automobile Club de Monaco. He added that the 7,500 tickets offered this year corresponding to one in three places, in order to allow distancing.
3,000 spectators only on Friday
The Grand Prix tonnage will however be limited to 3,000 spectators on May 21, the day of the first qualifying sessions, to spare the organization. There will be no fan zone or standing stand. The most delicate point will be the return of spectators, after the events, to avoid crowds.
Pierre Dartout said that controls will be reinforced at the border, especially at the station, with staff trained to spot any falsified tests. Several organizational points will be developed, in particular the authorized gauge on yachts and on balconies, and access to restaurants, currently prohibited to non-residents.
” Bars should be open between 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. for breakfasts and there will likely be flexibilities For the restoration, added Pierre Dartout.