This year's night race to be held on 2 October 2022
By Jonathan Wong, Assistant Sports Editor, The Straits Times, 27 Jan 2022
In one of the strongest signals that the country is committed to reopening and returning to life in a world with Covid-19, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and promoters Singapore GP on Thursday (Jan 27) announced a new seven-year deal to continue hosting a Formula One race here.
With international travel showing some signs of recovery, the agreement is the longest renewal with the Formula One Group - the previous ones were between four and five years. The longer runway is intended to help reposition Singapore again as a business and lifestyle destination and ensure the country maintains its competitive edge in the long term.
The last two night races were cancelled due to the pandemic while last year's edition was the last of the four-year extension signed in 2017. Singapore Airlines' title sponsorship also ended last year.
The latest contract is from 2022 until 2028 with this year's race scheduled for Oct 2 at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
Mr S. Iswaran, Minister for Transport and Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations, said: "Even as we deal with the immediate challenges of the pandemic, it is important that we focus on our recovery and long-term growth. The Singapore F1 race continues to be a strong focal point for tourists, global events and business meetings.
"We have decided to continue hosting the F1 race for another seven years, after thoroughly evaluating the long-term benefits that a term extension could bring to Singapore.
"The renewal will help sustain Singapore's reputation as a global city with a vibrant lifestyle, attracting international visitors as travel rebounds, and generating business revenue and jobs for Singaporeans."
The joint statement also stressed that the stakeholders would work with the various government agencies to ensure the health and safety of all participants, staff, local and overseas fans and the community.
While three of last year's 22 races - in Italy, Portugal and Azerbaijan - were held behind closed doors, the rest proceeded with spectators in the grandstands. Some, like in Bahrain, Spain and Monaco, early in the year had reduced capacities before venues in Austria, England and the United States began welcoming full houses.
The majority of races required adults to be fully vaccinated and/or supply a negative test result though mask wearing and social distancing were loosely enforced.
Singapore has hosted several international events in recent months. On Nov 27 and 28 last year, pop star JJ Lin performed in front of 2,000 fans each night at the Sands Theatre at Marina Bay Sands under vaccination-differentiated safe management measures which allowed concert-goers to sit alongside one another without the need for social distancing.
Two weeks prior, the Bloomberg New Economy Forum welcomed 300 international business and government leaders to Sentosa's Capella hotel, with strict testing requirements for delegates so as to allow for business networking.
And in December, Singapore received more than 500 foreign travellers - players, coaches, officials, sponsors and delegates from regional and continental football bodies - for the month-long, 10-team Suzuki Cup tournament with some games at the National Stadium drawing almost 10,000 fans.
The Singapore Grand Prix is on a different scale though.
The 2019 race, the last time it was staged here, drew a three-day total of 268,000 spectators - the second-highest after the 300,000 total at the 2008 maiden race.
Overseas visitors generally comprise 40 per cent of race-goers here and the race weekend contributes about $130 million annually in tourism receipts.
There have been 12 editions since 2008 and together, they brought more than 550,000 unique foreign visitors, contributing over $1.5 billion in tourism receipts.
The tourism sector has been battered by Covid-19. Last year, there were 330,000 visitor arrivals and an estimated $1.9 billion in tourism receipts.
It is only a fraction of the 19 million visitors and $27.7 billion in receipts from before the pandemic in 2019.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry and STB fund 60 per cent of the $135 million night race costs each year, with race promoters Singapore GP footing the rest.
This year's race layout at Marina Bay will likely have to be tweaked due to the planned construction of the NS Square, a new permanent space for large-scale national events which will replace the Float@Marina Bay. The new site, scheduled to start construction in March, will be completed by the end of 2025.
Last year's F1 drivers' championship was one of the most dramatic in recent memory, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen claiming his first world title in the season finale in Abu Dhabi, beating seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes under controversial circumstances.
In this year's provisional calendar released by F1 last October, it listed a record 23 races.
The 2022 season begins on March 20 in Bahrain. China will again not host a race for the third straight year due to the pandemic. Excluding the Middle East, there are only two races in Asia, Singapore on Oct 2 and the Japanese GP a week later.
As recently as 2013, there were six stops in the region - Malaysia, China, Singapore, South Korea, Japan and India.
Long-term Formula One deal could enhance Singapore race experience, legacy: Analysts
By Sazali Abdul Aziz, Correspondent, The Straits Times, 27 Jan 2022
Analysts believe the unprecedented seven-year deal for Singapore to continue hosting a Formula One Race here until 2028, announced on Thursday (Jan 27) could play a big part in creating investment opportunities.
The race will return to the Marina Bay Street Circuit in October this year after cancellations in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.
Mr James Walton, sports business group leader for Deloitte South-east Asia, said that the lengthy deal signifies how "serious and committed" Singapore is to re-establishing itself on the international sporting scene.
He said: "In the past (with shorter deals), every three or five years there was uncertainty and that is not always conducive to making investments to improve the sport and the experience in Singapore."
He added that a longer runway could encourage companies to make such investments, for example in the area of sustainability, which has been a focus of both F1 and the Singapore Government in recent years.
CIMB Private Banking economist Song Seng Wun said the deal is in step with the rest of Asia opening up with major sports events in the coming year, such as next month's Beijing Winter Olympics, September's Asian Games in Hangzhou and May's SEA Games in Hanoi.
"We are into the third year of the pandemic, and I see this as us taking control of how we live and work, rather than being held hostage (by the virus)," he said.
Still, with nine months to go till this year's race, just how many fans - both local and foreign - will be able to catch the excitement is still up in the air.
The last event in 2019 drew a three-day total of 268,000 spectators.
Dr Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious diseases specialist at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, noted that global vaccination rates will be higher by then and anticipates the authorities will have a "better handle" of local cases by the time the race comes round. He expects a "marked opening of travel".
But he added that it is "too hard to predict" what types of safety protocols are necessary then.
"Omicron has put the world in disarray with (many having) completely different responses," he said. "Just compare the protocols (here) in November to now. It's just a two-month difference but the (measures) are completely different."
Mr Song noted that Singapore now welcomes "a fraction" of the 1.6 million tourists it did pre-pandemic, but stressed that a slow recovery is a recovery nonetheless.
The International Air Travel Association has forecast a 50 per cent increase in global air passenger numbers this year, with a return to pre-Covid levels between 2023 and 2025.
Said Mr Song: "For us it is now a case whereby if we can welcome 10 extra visitors to the city, then that is 10 more than what we had before.
"If we have to count one person at a time in terms of what it means as a boost to the economy, then we ought to."
The legacy of the Singapore Grand Prix could also be enhanced by the new deal, which coincides with a new Concorde Agreement - a contract between F1 and the teams which sets out the terms by which the teams compete.
Mr Walton noted that Singapore is a place well-liked by sponsors and teams and noted Singapore's profile as an affluent, energetic city resonated with F1's long-term vision for the sport.
The fresh deal will end in 2028 - two decades after the first F1 Singapore GP was held - and by then Singapore could establish itself as a racing venue in the same vein as some Grands Prix in Europe.
"Some of the traditional races have been dropping off in recent years and there's been a lot of talk (of the same) around the German and Belgian Grands Prix," said Mr Walton.
"F1 is very aware of the young and middle-class population, and the financial power, is now in Asia… A place like Singapore is at the heart of that."
No comments:
Post a Comment