The Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix attracted more than 73,000 visitors over the weekend, said a top official, adding that many visitors travelled to the country from across the world.

The Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) spokesman added the racing event, which started last Friday, was a resounding success, according to a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

"More than 28,000 people, most of them from Bahrain, came to the circuit on the last day yesterday and several hundreds of them stayed back for the enthralling Ne Yo and Calvin Harris concert that concluded the celebrations," said the spokesman.

"We had an impressive array of performances at the Formula One Village where a very large number of families enjoyed themselves over the three days," added the spokesman.

"The most popular sporting event in the Middle East has once again proved to be a great hit."

Numbers of visitors this year were marginally more than last year's 70,000, and the official said the attendance was impressive in spite of the hot weather.

"The activities were in keeping with the needs of the families, who came in large numbers," he added.

Meanwhile, an official at the BIC's medical centre said no major incidents or medical conditions were reported during the weekend.

"We had some cases of heat exhaustion that were quickly dealt with," he said. "Once again, we had an incident-free race but we were prepared for any eventuality. We were a little worried about the intense heat but fortunately, it did not create many problems."

While temperatures at the BIC was reported to be around 30C, the temperature on the track was as high as 41C.

Bottles of water, soft drinks and juice boxes flew off the shelves on all three days, despite some visitors complaining about the high prices. – TradeArabia News Service