Will the Sochi circuit go through the Olympic Stadium?
Less than two years before organizing the first Russian Grand Prix in the history of Formula One, a source close to the matter indicates that the possibility of the track incorporating the Olympic Stadium was not ruled out, while Sochi will have hosted the Winter Olympic Games a few months earlier.
While Russia will host the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the unavoidable question of the repurposing of the Olympic facilities, constructed for the event, is already the subject of discussions and studies, notably for the Fisht Olympic Stadium, which is expected to be reused for the 2018 World Cup and could also host a football club.
Still in 2014, the Black Sea coastal resort theoretically should host the first Russian Grand Prix in the history of Formula One, a circuit whose layout was expected to wind around the Olympic facilities. However, although in the initial plan, the track was only supposed to skirt the Olympic Stadium, the idea of Formula One cars passing through the stadium seems to be gradually gaining traction: “It’s something that has emerged as a possibility,” indicates a source close to the project to the website Aroundtherings.com, before adding, “It’s an exciting possibility for Formula One.”
The 40,000-seat venue, which is scheduled for delivery in June 2013, could thus allow for the passage of Formula One, once some of its temporary infrastructures are dismantled. However, since the project’s launch in October 2010, the calendar proximity of the two sporting events has always suggested a potential postponement of the Grand Prix, with Aroundtherings.com reminding that the IOC has clearly stated it has the option to postpone the race to 2015 if its organization were to impede the preparation of the Olympic Games. The use of the Fisht Olympic Stadium for the Grand Prix could therefore increase the risks of the event being postponed.
