ID :
211613
Fri, 10/07/2011 - 03:42
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/211613
The shortlink copeid
Formula One host city gets second chance to undo mistakes
By Kenneth Quillinan
Contributing writer
(Yonhap) - When Formula One returns to South Korea next week, it will give the country more than an opportunity to host the prestigious auto race. It will also be a chance to amend for mistakes made the first time the nation took to the F1 track.
Race teams will return to Yeongam, a city 384 kilometers southwest of Seoul, for the 2011 F1 Korean Grand Prix from Oct. 14-16. The city debuted as an F1 host city last year and attracted more than 160,000 spectators from all over the world, but reviews after the event indicated that the host had botched its duties.
The Korean Auto Valley Operation (KAVO) came under severe scrutiny for its unprofessional approach towards the construction of the stadium, ineffective marketing tactics and just about all basic general operation after the inaugural event. The chief organizer, Chung Young-cho, was dismissed in January of this year by KAVO in response to numerous complaints made by visitors. Chung's apparent mismanagement of areas such as construction and accommodation were the reasons given for his dismissal.
Lee Gaskell, a self-professed F1 fan who teaches English in Daegu, complained about grandstands that were not completed in time, hygiene problems and poor food quality at last year's event. "There was absolutely no glamor to the venue as you would normally attribute to F1," he said. He also criticized a lack of adequate exits and entrances, few shuttle buses and said there was overall disorder with lot of pushing and shoving.
South Korea's Board of Audit and Inspection, which began an inquiry in the early part of this year into the financial soundness of the F1 organizer, discovered it is now in arrears of more than 500 billion won (US$438 million). In addition, it is expected that the elite sporting event will entail a loss of 485 billion won by 2016, according to the auditing board. The financial difficulties attached to the race have been evident since the beginning. It was only two weeks before the 2010 event was to commence that the track was completed to the approval of the FIA, the race's governing body. This led to organizers being forced to give away thousands of free tickets and to discount many others to ensure the stadium held as close to capacity as possible.
Organizers are betting that public interest and thus the number of spectators will be better this time. The price of the cheapest tickets was lowered to an even more affordable level while premium seats remained at costs similar to other countries, according to an official from the tourist planning production team for the F1 organizing committee. The cheapest tickets for this years' race are available at 87,000 won instead of 128,700 last year.
"I think this strategy pretty much makes sense," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity as she was not authorized to speak to the press. "The major customers who are willing to buy higher grade seats are well aware that the investment is worth it because the location of grandstand gives different excitement."
Anton Scholz, the CEO of Korea-Consult who will be handling the needs of foreign companies associated with the Grand Prix, sought an increased number of bilingual volunteers for this year's event.
"With the F1 race being held during the same time period as many students sit their midterm examinations, we originally found it quite difficult to recruit a sufficient amount of bilingual volunteers for this event," he said. "It took some time but now we are well equipped in this area."
Jo Young-seung, staff manager at Korea-Consult, is confident that language difficulties will not be a problem this year. "In fact, we had to turn down some applicants because there were too many people who were interested in joining this project," he said.
Event organizers plan to have Chinese and Japanese speaking staff on hand as well, with a 24-hour help center available to foreign tourists.
Accommodation prices will probably rise due to an influx of tourists, Scholz said, but will be kept to a more acceptable scale than in 2010. Some lodgings charged up to five times more than their usual price last year, leading many unhappy visitors to turn away and leaving many rooms vacant.
"Korea-Consult has a partnership with an array of overseas companies to provide package deals that include accommodation, all meals and transportation to F1-related professionals, companies, media and institutions attending," said Jo. Organizers also have available more hotels and motels near the circuit plus alternatives such as auto camping zones and home stays.
But when it comes to the final clinchers for the event's success or failure -- the level of public interest and participation of sponsors -- those involved are still not satisfied. Compared to the recent international athletics competition hosted by Daegu and the upcoming World Expo in Yeosu, the marketing strategy has been disappointing, according to Scholz.
"There is clearly a lack of advertising nationwide for this international event," he said. "This is very disappointing especially in a country that is renowned for being one of the major players in car production."
Negotiations are still under way to attract more corporate sponsors.
Baseball and soccer are currently the reigning international sports in South Korea, but F1 organizers are confident that in years to come auto racing will join the arena. "In order to create interest among the next generation, there is a special program called F1," the organizing committee official said. "Kids can learn how to design and make an F1 model car through this program at Mokpo University."
Contributing writer
(Yonhap) - When Formula One returns to South Korea next week, it will give the country more than an opportunity to host the prestigious auto race. It will also be a chance to amend for mistakes made the first time the nation took to the F1 track.
Race teams will return to Yeongam, a city 384 kilometers southwest of Seoul, for the 2011 F1 Korean Grand Prix from Oct. 14-16. The city debuted as an F1 host city last year and attracted more than 160,000 spectators from all over the world, but reviews after the event indicated that the host had botched its duties.
The Korean Auto Valley Operation (KAVO) came under severe scrutiny for its unprofessional approach towards the construction of the stadium, ineffective marketing tactics and just about all basic general operation after the inaugural event. The chief organizer, Chung Young-cho, was dismissed in January of this year by KAVO in response to numerous complaints made by visitors. Chung's apparent mismanagement of areas such as construction and accommodation were the reasons given for his dismissal.
Lee Gaskell, a self-professed F1 fan who teaches English in Daegu, complained about grandstands that were not completed in time, hygiene problems and poor food quality at last year's event. "There was absolutely no glamor to the venue as you would normally attribute to F1," he said. He also criticized a lack of adequate exits and entrances, few shuttle buses and said there was overall disorder with lot of pushing and shoving.
South Korea's Board of Audit and Inspection, which began an inquiry in the early part of this year into the financial soundness of the F1 organizer, discovered it is now in arrears of more than 500 billion won (US$438 million). In addition, it is expected that the elite sporting event will entail a loss of 485 billion won by 2016, according to the auditing board. The financial difficulties attached to the race have been evident since the beginning. It was only two weeks before the 2010 event was to commence that the track was completed to the approval of the FIA, the race's governing body. This led to organizers being forced to give away thousands of free tickets and to discount many others to ensure the stadium held as close to capacity as possible.
Organizers are betting that public interest and thus the number of spectators will be better this time. The price of the cheapest tickets was lowered to an even more affordable level while premium seats remained at costs similar to other countries, according to an official from the tourist planning production team for the F1 organizing committee. The cheapest tickets for this years' race are available at 87,000 won instead of 128,700 last year.
"I think this strategy pretty much makes sense," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity as she was not authorized to speak to the press. "The major customers who are willing to buy higher grade seats are well aware that the investment is worth it because the location of grandstand gives different excitement."
Anton Scholz, the CEO of Korea-Consult who will be handling the needs of foreign companies associated with the Grand Prix, sought an increased number of bilingual volunteers for this year's event.
"With the F1 race being held during the same time period as many students sit their midterm examinations, we originally found it quite difficult to recruit a sufficient amount of bilingual volunteers for this event," he said. "It took some time but now we are well equipped in this area."
Jo Young-seung, staff manager at Korea-Consult, is confident that language difficulties will not be a problem this year. "In fact, we had to turn down some applicants because there were too many people who were interested in joining this project," he said.
Event organizers plan to have Chinese and Japanese speaking staff on hand as well, with a 24-hour help center available to foreign tourists.
Accommodation prices will probably rise due to an influx of tourists, Scholz said, but will be kept to a more acceptable scale than in 2010. Some lodgings charged up to five times more than their usual price last year, leading many unhappy visitors to turn away and leaving many rooms vacant.
"Korea-Consult has a partnership with an array of overseas companies to provide package deals that include accommodation, all meals and transportation to F1-related professionals, companies, media and institutions attending," said Jo. Organizers also have available more hotels and motels near the circuit plus alternatives such as auto camping zones and home stays.
But when it comes to the final clinchers for the event's success or failure -- the level of public interest and participation of sponsors -- those involved are still not satisfied. Compared to the recent international athletics competition hosted by Daegu and the upcoming World Expo in Yeosu, the marketing strategy has been disappointing, according to Scholz.
"There is clearly a lack of advertising nationwide for this international event," he said. "This is very disappointing especially in a country that is renowned for being one of the major players in car production."
Negotiations are still under way to attract more corporate sponsors.
Baseball and soccer are currently the reigning international sports in South Korea, but F1 organizers are confident that in years to come auto racing will join the arena. "In order to create interest among the next generation, there is a special program called F1," the organizing committee official said. "Kids can learn how to design and make an F1 model car through this program at Mokpo University."
