Vietnam’s F1 debut may happen in November

Hanoi Chairman Nguyen Duc Chung said at a city People's Council meeting Monday that Hanoi will make "a thorough assessment of disease-related issues and will negotiate with the organizing committee so that it can organize the race at the end of November."

The race, which was scheduled to take place at My Dinh Stadium from April 3 to 5, was postponed as the Covid-19 pandemic precipitated crises in more than 200 countries and territories, leading to lockdowns, flight cancellations and stringent travel restrictions.

The postponement was announced just 20 days before the race’s original schedule.

At the pandemic’s peak in the country, Hanoi was the biggest Covid-19 hotspot with 121 cases. Vietnam has now gone 81 days without any community transmission of the novel coronavirus, and most socio-economic activities have returned to normal, including sports tournaments.

The country's tally of active Covid-19 cases is 29 as 340 have been discharged from the hospital after treatment.

As of early this month, the F1 organizers had canceled seven of the 22 races, while those to be held in Vietnam, Bahrain, China, Canada, Russia, USA, Mexico, Brazil and the UAE remain uncertain.

Hanoi has signed a 10-year contract to host the race starting this year, and it could be extended further in the eighth year.