PUTRAJAYA: The Youth and Sports Ministry is holding weekly coordination meetings until the staging of the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix to ensure all preparations, including security and protocol aspects, run smoothly.
Its minister Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari (pic) said the meetings are held every Tuesday and involve the main committee and technical committee, as well as eight sub-committees set up to coordinate preparations.
“We have now set up eight sub-committees at the ministry level. All these committees will meet every Tuesday until the Bahrain F1 race to ensure everything runs smoothly in terms of security, protocol and other aspects.
“So far, everything is running smoothly,” he said after launching the Month of Friends of Democracy through the Kuasa Orang Muda initiative here yesterday.
Dr Mohammed Taufiq said the government had previously set up two special committees to coordinate preparations for the staging of the Bahrain F1 race at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) from Oct 2-4, Bernama reported.
He was previously reported to have said that the committees comprised a main committee chaired by Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar and a technical committee under the ministry to ensure that every aspect of the preparations progresses smoothly according to the set timeline.
He said the government has so far allocated RM16mil for the staging of the Bahrain F1 race, while any additional cost is being discussed and would be announced after all negotiations have been finalised.
Dr Mohammed Taufiq also said that a technical team from the International Automobile Federation (FIA) had recently inspected the circuit and was satisfied with its current condition, with no major issues identified.
“So, the closure of SIC from Sept 7 until race day is actually at the request of the FIA and Formula One Management to carry out maintenance on the circuit, as well as several improvements identified by the Bahrain International Circuit as necessary.
“Then, there will be training sessions and track testing to ensure that SIC is in good condition, functioning properly and safe,” he said.
The media previously reported that SIC was expected to be closed to the public from Sept 7 until the end of the Bahrain F1 race to facilitate maintenance, testing and final preparations.
