Fans unfairly turned away at FP1 of Canada GP

The first free practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix provided a nasty experience when very soon it started raining and hailing very hard. It began to storm so hard that at one point fans were taken from the main grandstand by local police. Organisers closed the bridges bringing fans to the circuit, in addition to evacuating the grandstands. They then told the fans present, according to the Daily Mail, that all Formula 1 activities at the track, had been cancelled for the rest of the day.This, of course, turned out not to be the state of affairs.

My son was stopped by police at metro exit saying to go home, that the event is cancelled. I told him play dumb & stall. Stick around.
I have been sitting at the airport and its been sunny for 40mins now. F1 practice cancelled.... what a very very bad decision. Since when!

— M (@EM555544) June 7, 2024

Disappointed fans

The result: disappointed fans. Many of them had already left the track and were later not allowed to return. Fans had taken to social media and claimed local police had told them to leave, despite no official postponement from the FIA. Nevertheless, this is not the first time there has been hassle around the free practice sessions in Canada. Last year, there were problems with the CCTV that prevented the safety of workers around the track. FP1 in Las Vegas last year was also halted after just eight minutes when a manhole cover came loose. For the next few hours, the track was not driven and fans, then semi-voluntarily, headed home.

This article was written in collaboration with Sophia Crothall.