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Lisbon, July 25 (IANS) The International Automobile Federation (FIA) has announced that the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve (AIA) in Portimao, will host a Formula 1 Grand Prix on October 25.
The announcement sees F1 return to Portugal after 24 years, the last race in the country having been held in 1996 at the Estoril Circuit near the capital Lisbon, reports Xinhua news agency.
The President of the Portuguese Federation of Automobile and Karting (FPAK), Ni Amorim, celebrated the Friday's announcement as "a historic moment".
"It is long-awaited news because since March we have worked to make this possible, intervening with the FIA and the government," he said at a press conference, adding that the public is expected to be on the stands.
Paulo Pinheiro, administrator of the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, stressed that this announcement "is the culmination of a lot of work, a team effort, now awarded with Formula One in Portugal".
"From the first moment we wanted the race to have an audience, and we worked on that with all health entities. I think we did a very good job together," he said.
The start of the 2020 F1 season was scheduled for March 15 in Australia, but that race was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has severely disrupted the 2020 F1 calendar. So far, 13 races have been confirmed.
The race in Portimao was confirmed at the same time as events at the Nurburgring in Germany and Italy's Imola. All three were not part of the original 2020 calendar.
--IANS
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