Formula One drivers feel they’re safe
Formula One is back in Saudi Arabia this weekend, one year after a missile strike hit an oil depot near the track during race week.
And while the drivers expressed confidence in their safety ahead of Sunday’s race, seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton again broached the subject of human rights issues in the kingdom.
Drivers have been given assurances by F1 that increased safety measures will prevent the race from being impacted like last year, when Houthi rebels from Yemen hit a depot only seven miles away during the first practice session. The attack led to hours of talks between drivers, organizers and stakeholders but the race went ahead.
The missile strike came two weeks after 81 people were put to death in Saudi Arabia in a mass execution — the largest in the kingdom’s modern history. According to Reprieve, a nonprofit organization defending people facing human rights abuses, a further 16 executions were then carried out.
Saudi Arabia is one of several countries accused of “sportswashing,” using high-profile sporting events to distract from human rights abuses.
Others include Bahrain, which held the season-opening F1 race two weeks ago, and Qatar, which hosted soccer’s World Cup last year and also has an F1 race.
Indycar: Indycar on Friday cleared driver Jack Harvey to return to competition following a frightening crash in the season-opening race. Harvey was briefly evaluated at a Florida hospital following a multi-car crash in the March 5 race on the streets of downtown St. Petersburg. Kyle Kirkwood launched airborne over the top of Harvey’s car in the crash. Rahal Letterman Lanigan said Harvey will race April 2 on the oval at Texas Motor Speedway. The British driver missed the Texas race last year with a concussion diagnosed ahead of the race from a crash earlier in the weekend.