More than 80,000 spectators attended the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix over three days, said the chairman of Bahrain International Circuit (BIC).

 Zayed Al Zayani said 28,000 attended on the final day as the BIC was turned into a sea of colour.

Earlier, it had been reported between 25 and 30,000 spectators had attended the race on the first two days.

In a statement, Al Zayani congratulated Sebastian Vettel and the Red Bull team on their outstanding victory.

'The excitement and quality of the racing is a fitting conclusion to another enthralling weekend of racing at the BIC,' he said.

'Hosting such a big event would not be possible without the enormous hard work of all involved, including the marshals, other volunteers and my team at BIC and I would like to thank all of them for their efforts.

'I am pleased to say that we have had a great level of support for this race weekend,' he said. 'Today we attracted 28,000 paying spectators to BIC, who have enjoyed a great day of racing and entertainment.'

He said an independent survey conducted by Nielsen and released this week showed 77 per cent of Bahrainis supported the race.

'In addition to this, there are very few countries that can claim that almost 10 per cent of its population attends its Grand Prix. Given these facts, and the incredible atmosphere at the track today, there can be no doubt in my mind of what Bahrain thinks about F1.'

Al Zayani said they were now looking forward to hosting a number of other major motorsport events at BIC this year, including GP2 next week, the World Endurance Championship in September and the World Karting Championship in November.

The BIC yesterday witnessed a sea of humanity descending on the venue with the entire area being turned into a huge carnival site, even as several entertainment activities continued for the third day.

'The atmosphere is electric and we are enjoying it immensely,' said Saqid, a university student. 'I have come with a group of five friends who are having fun.'

He said, however, they were missing the LMFAO concert, which had been cancelled at the last minute. 'It would have been great had they been here but we have more than made up for that.'

Almost all of the stands at the BIC were full as well as its entertainment area. Throughout the day, several bands played music, much to the delight of the visitors. The Michael Jackson Tribute group, which performed twice, was the star attraction.

Other activities included the village kids' entertainment, which consisted of three different tents, each of which caters to its own type of attraction. These include a Kids' Theatre Tent, Kids' Circus Tent and Kids' Arts and Crafts Tent.

Roaming acts were entertaining the crowd and setting a mood of fun and amusement throughout the day. They included a Bombay Baja Brass Band, roaming magician Ian Kendall, and many other buskers, comedians and special performers. – TradeArabia News Service