Speech by Nicolo di San Germano UIM F1 promoter
at the Sharjah press conference on October 9, 2001.

The last F1 Grand Prix took place in Vienna just 2 days before the tragedy in New York and Washington and the Sharjah Grand Prix is taking place in a moment of deep international tensions.

Personally I believe that in this kind of situation it is even more vital to develop each and every opportunity for cultural and social exchange across all borders. The international language of sport is an ideal way of improving our mutual knowledge and understanding across any cultural, political or religious frontier.

Also for this reason I am very happy to be once again in the UAE in the beautiful city of Sharjah with the UIM World Championship that this year has seen the participation of the best drivers from 21 nations thus making this sport the most international of all power-driven sports.

For me our World Championship is more than just a sport event or a fascinating show on the water in the centre of some of the most beautiful cities in the world, it is also an excellent opportunity for your sponsors to develop company profiles and business by using this occasion to project their company image around the world through the international live coverage, offering a different view of the heart of your city linked to the most dynamic, high tech and fastest growing sport in the world today.

We will provide a live signal through Etisalat uplink via satellite which will be distributed by EBU world-wide. 9 cameras with 2 on-board cameras, a specialised TV crew of 20 persons are just part of the 250 technicians, mechanics, media people and drivers who will “invade” Sharjah and transform the city for 72 hours into the world capital of powerboating.