Barca boss: Row 'taken out of context'

Tuesday, 05, February, 2008, 12:21

 

The boss of the Circuit de Catalunya circuit where Lewis Hamilton was subjected to racist abuse claims coverage of the controversy has been “taken out of context” – stressing the small minority of spectators involved in the taunting were immediately dealt with by officials.

 

The Barcelona venue has been at the centre of race storm following the images of spectators hurling abuse and jeers at the McLaren driver last weekend, with the incident continuing to make front-page news in the UK.

 

Catalunya director Ramon Pradera says his circuit will do everything it can to avoid a repeat of the situation in future, but believes the weekend’s incident was blown out of proportion and says the circuit had already clamped down on the problems by the final day of the test.

 

"I was present at all times and we cannot generalise the actions of four of five individuals in comparison with the 50,000 spectators that were here at the weekend,” he was quoted as saying by ITN.

 

"At the time that these situations took place, we reacted immediately by cordoning the area, throwing out those individuals and taking away the banners.

 

“On Sunday, we didn't see these episodes occur."

 

The Spanish motorsport authority has been asked to submit a report to the FIA outlining the measures it will put in place to ensure there is no repeat of the ugly scenes in future.

 

Pradera says the circuit has already assured the FIA it will do all it can to stamp out racism, and that McLaren was satisfied with the security measures that were introduced to protect both team and star driver during the weekend.

 

"We have already spoken to the FIA assuring them that we will eliminate all racist elements,” he said.

 

“I spoke to McLaren yesterday and they were satisfied with the measures we took."

 

From ITV-F1

Vic, have you been to a football match or seen any of the news regarding foorball over the past year or so? From reading your posts it would seem that racism and football matches are still very much hand in hand and it happens all the time. If this were the case, there would be public outcry and you know it! This season alone, there's been so much pressure to stop bad language from the stands. And this is just simple 'f***''s and 'referee's a w*n**r' chants, let alone racist abuse and monkey noises. I am a safety steward at a football ground and we get briefed on bad language before EVERY game and people that do repeatedly do it are often kicked out. Racism and football in the UK has come a hell of a long way since the 80s and whenever there is any kind of racist remarks (Newcastle fans to Mido) it gets well publicised and the people responsible punished accordingly.

 

You say we shouldn't stop other nations being racist because we are at times. Why? Racism is racism and shouldn't be tolerated. Surely it's better to try and get ALL racism stopped and spread awareness around Europe/the world? Does it really matter where it's from and who it's directed at?

From ITV-F1

If this is true then good, but I somehow doubt it.

 

From the BBC site:

 

Reports in a number of Spanish papers said Hamilton was booed and insulted whenever he made his way from the team motor home and into the pits on Saturday for pre-season testing at the Barcelona circuit.

 

So that's SPANISH press saying that and not the 'biased' British press. We're supposed to believe that it was just 'four or five' people who followed him everywhere to do this. And if they did we react 'immediately by cordoning the area, throwing out those individuals and taking away the banners' then why did it REPEATEDLY happen? That doesn't seem very immediate to me!

they got rid of the banners immediately.

 

Booing isn't illegal tho. The insults could have been....

Vic, have you been to a football match or seen any of the news regarding foorball over the past year or so? From reading your posts it would seem that racism and football matches are still very much hand in hand and it happens all the time. If this were the case, there would be public outcry and you know it! This season alone, there's been so much pressure to stop bad language from the stands. And this is just simple 'f***''s and 'referee's a w*n**r' chants, let alone racist abuse and monkey noises. I am a safety steward at a football ground and we get briefed on bad language before EVERY game and people that do repeatedly do it are often kicked out. Racism and football in the UK has come a hell of a long way since the 80s and whenever there is any kind of racist remarks (Newcastle fans to Mido) it gets well publicised and the people responsible punished accordingly.

 

You say we shouldn't stop other nations being racist because we are at times. Why? Racism is racism and shouldn't be tolerated. Surely it's better to try and get ALL racism stopped and spread awareness around Europe/the world? Does it really matter where it's from and who it's directed at?

 

exactly!

 

i detest footy, ive not been to a match since 1968 (derby vs chelsea league cup), i dont watch footy on tv..

 

so theres my cards on the table.... however i cannot for one moment believe that the terraces of today are a patch on those in the past, where monkey calls etc were common place. do fans 'black up' in a golly wog stylee?.... thats what they did in spain.

 

 

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PGC23v4ijjQ

 

This kinda thing

thats horrific. and its terrible how some can say "keep up the good work" :manson:

Yeah that kinda thing, even if racist behaviour is less in grounds these days there is plenty going on in the pubs on match days, to make things even more offensive Adebayor's father died last year

I don't for one moment condone it, knuckle dragging racism is obscene regardless of nationality but what I am against is Spain bashing by the Brit tabloids and labelling an entire nation because of the behaviour of a tiny minority of its citizens while at the same time racism being a very serious problem in this country with racist songs at football grounds, sectarian violence, as many as 15% of the country voting for the racist BNP party in elections and the vile muslim bashing by the tabloids, until we get our own house in order with regards racism it is wrong of us to judge other nations

 

That is not connected with this incident it is in general, of course any racist behaviour towards Hamilton is disgusting

 

Spot on Craig.. The whole point of this is that it's pot calling kettle black (if you'll pardon the expression)... Some people are choosing to ignore the very serious race problems (on ALL sides of the fault lines, not just a case of white on black or white on asian, there's certainly plenty of examples of racism on the part of blacks and asians as well...) that exist in this country... And the Tabloids coming along with their "Spain-Bashing" antics, basically tarring ALL Spanish people with the same brush really just doesn't help matters... The whole press coverage just reeks of "that funny Johnny Foreigner, we're not like that at ALL in this country. Oh no....". Absolute bollocks we're not.... <_<

 

And Rob, NOBODY is condoning this, quite the bloody OPPOSITE in fact.... We're having a go at ALL racism here, we're just not being selective about it.....

Spot on Craig.. The whole point of this is that it's pot calling kettle black (if you'll pardon the expression)... Some people are choosing to ignore the very serious race problems (on ALL sides of the fault lines, not just a case of white on black or white on asian, there's certainly plenty of examples of racism on the part of blacks and asians as well...) that exist in this country... And the Tabloids coming along with their "Spain-Bashing" antics, basically tarring ALL Spanish people with the same brush really just doesn't help matters... The whole press coverage just reeks of "that funny Johnny Foreigner, we're not like that at ALL in this country. Oh no....". Absolute bollocks we're not.... <_<

 

And Rob, NOBODY is condoning this, quite the bloody OPPOSITE in fact.... We're having a go at ALL racism here, we're just not being selective about it.....

 

you are condoning it.... by suggesting that we cant moan about the spaniards treatment of our man because racism goes on over here anyway!

 

the TOPIC of this thread was about lewis hammilton, NOT racism in sport.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PGC23v4ijjQ

 

This kinda thing

Well a hell of a lot of Spurs fans are w*n**rs unforunately -_- (not saying you are Craig :P ) and there is the fact that one of their main chants in the stands consists of the words "With a packet of sweets and a cheeky smile, Wenger is a f*cking p*edophile" which isn't racist but still very immature :rolleyes:

 

I know I'm going off-topic but THIS genius of a slightly re-written chant from the greatest team in the world (Manchester United :D ) is an example of the GOOD things that are sung in the stands i.e. taking the p*ss slightly out of the opposition in a light hearted manner.

 

To the tune of an Inspired Carpets song:

 

This is how it feels to be City

This is how it feels to be small

This is how it feels when you can't tell between a balloon and a ball

 

:lol:

Well a hell of a lot of Spurs fans are w*n**rs unforunately -_- (not saying you are Craig :P ) and there is the fact that one of their main chants in the stands consists of the words "With a packet of sweets and a cheeky smile, Wenger is a f*cking p*edophile" which isn't racist but still very immature :rolleyes:

 

I know I'm going off-topic but THIS genius of a slightly re-written chant from the greatest team in the world (Manchester United :D ) is an example of the GOOD things that are sung in the stands i.e. taking the p*ss slightly out of the opposition in a light hearted manner.

 

To the tune of an Inspired Carpets song:

 

This is how it feels to be City

This is how it feels to be small

This is how it feels when you can't tell between a balloon and a ball

 

:lol:

Classic song!

 

Every week on the BBC website there's 'chants of the week' posted. They're always all in good humour.

Well a hell of a lot of Spurs fans are w*n**rs unforunately -_- (not saying you are Craig :P ) and there is the fact that one of their main chants in the stands consists of the words "With a packet of sweets and a cheeky smile, Wenger is a f*cking p*edophile" which isn't racist but still very immature :rolleyes:

 

I know I'm going off-topic but THIS genius of a slightly re-written chant from the greatest team in the world (Manchester United :D ) is an example of the GOOD things that are sung in the stands i.e. taking the p*ss slightly out of the opposition in a light hearted manner.

 

To the tune of an Inspired Carpets song:

 

This is how it feels to be City

This is how it feels to be small

This is how it feels when you can't tell between a balloon and a ball

 

:lol:

 

actually youve a very vallied point there.... footy fans take the p*** out of their opponants for whatever reason, it doesnt have to be race, unlike this spanish debacle which was deliberately contrived to humiliate hammilton.

Well a hell of a lot of Spurs fans are w*n**rs unforunately -_- (not saying you are Craig :P ) and there is the fact that one of their main chants in the stands consists of the words "With a packet of sweets and a cheeky smile, Wenger is a f*cking p*edophile" which isn't racist but still very immature :rolleyes:

 

I know I'm going off-topic but THIS genius of a slightly re-written chant from the greatest team in the world (Manchester United :D ) is an example of the GOOD things that are sung in the stands i.e. taking the p*ss slightly out of the opposition in a light hearted manner.

 

To the tune of an Inspired Carpets song:

 

This is how it feels to be City

This is how it feels to be small

This is how it feels when you can't tell between a balloon and a ball

 

:lol:

 

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

gotta love United

Vic, have you been to a football match or seen any of the news regarding foorball over the past year or so? From reading your posts it would seem that racism and football matches are still very much hand in hand and it happens all the time. If this were the case, there would be public outcry and you know it! This season alone, there's been so much pressure to stop bad language from the stands. And this is just simple 'f***''s and 'referee's a w*n**r' chants, let alone racist abuse and monkey noises. I am a safety steward at a football ground and we get briefed on bad language before EVERY game and people that do repeatedly do it are often kicked out. Racism and football in the UK has come a hell of a long way since the 80s and whenever there is any kind of racist remarks (Newcastle fans to Mido) it gets well publicised and the people responsible punished accordingly.

 

You say we shouldn't stop other nations being racist because we are at times. Why? Racism is racism and shouldn't be tolerated. Surely it's better to try and get ALL racism stopped and spread awareness around Europe/the world? Does it really matter where it's from and who it's directed at?

 

 

Kinda different debate but stewards doing that is KILLING the atmosphere at football. Why cant football fans let off steam at a match and swear to there blue in the face at the ref, manager, player's or whoever. Its all abit of fun and calling the ref a w*n**r isnt gonna hurt anybody. Sure most kids at home would hear worse than that at home <_<. Makes me kinda miss the 70s n 80s when football was for REAL working class fans not middle class w*n**rs who only got into football after Euro 96 :rolleyes: Not talking about racist chanting which is entirely unacceptable of course.

With all this racial discrimination in sport, the issues should get raised so it will influence people especially young ones that racism is completely wrong and also it will become a thing of the past. We live in the 21st ceuntry, there shouldn't be anymore racism in the world but unfortunately racism is everywhere. :(

Kinda different debate but stewards doing that is KILLING the atmosphere at football. Why cant football fans let off steam at a match and swear to there blue in the face at the ref, manager, player's or whoever. Its all abit of fun and calling the ref a w*n**r isnt gonna hurt anybody. Sure most kids at home would hear worse than that at home <_<. Makes me kinda miss the 70s n 80s when football was for REAL working class fans not middle class w*n**rs who only got into football after Euro 96 :rolleyes: Not talking about racist chanting which is entirely unacceptable of course.

It's hardly the stewards fault. We just have to enforce the rules (often stupid) which the club forces. None of us particularly like having to enforce some of the rules, tbh. I also think it depends on context. Calling someone an f-ing c after they've missed a penalty is perfectly understandable, as long as they're not doing it all the time...

the TOPIC of this thread was about lewis hammilton, NOT racism in sport.

 

Cant talk about one thing without talking about the other mate, the broader issues are kinda LINKED dont you think....?

 

What I find astonishing is that people seem to think racism or sectarianism in British sport is somehow ancient history and we got rid of it in the 70s... Well, that's just utter cr@p mate... Neil Lennon, the Celtic and Northern Ireland international (and a Roman Catholic), and his family were sent death threats by a Loyalist terrorist group simply because he showed a tiny bit of support to the idea of a United Ireland international football team, he was forced to basically retire from international football because of it. This was in 2002... -_- I would say that was deffo on a par with the treatment Hamilton got....

 

Another example - in the 1989/90 season, Mo Johnston committed the "cardinal sin" of being a Catholic and signing to Graeme Souness' Rangers football club.. The amount of abuse and hatred this sparked on both sides of the footballing divide was quite sickening (and one of the main reasons I lost interest in the game as a whole), never mind the fact that Johnston was one of the greatest strikers that Scotland ever bloody produced, never mind the 40-odd international goals he scored for his country, NAH, all that was "important" to these idiots was that he was a "fukkin' Fenian" or a "Blue-nose traitor" <_< ....

 

This aint ancient history mate....

Another example - in the 1989/90 season, Mo Johnston committed the "cardinal sin" of being a Catholic and signing to Graeme Souness' Rangers football club.. The amount of abuse and hatred this sparked on both sides of the footballing divide was quite sickening (and one of the main reasons I lost interest in the game as a whole), never mind the fact that Johnston was one of the greatest strikers that Scotland ever bloody produced, never mind the 40-odd international goals he scored for his country, NAH, all that was "important" to these idiots was that he was a "fukkin' Fenian" or a "Blue-nose traitor" <_< ....

All the religious c**p between Celtic and Rangers was the main reason why I never supported the idea of them going into the English Premiership (let alone all the other reasons) though thank god that never happened. -_-

 

Though saying all this you see a very small amount of racism in the English league if any and of course everywhere unfortunately because of the small minority of small minded people we have the 'Lets kick racism out of football' banners everywhere (and you also see it when you open Football Manager on your PC) Infact it's when English players play in Europe or away games for England is where you see most racism and that's directed at them! Like the amount Ashley Cole got subjected to not so long ago and not even someone like him deserves that!

 

Oh and of course if only Millwall FC didn't exist (and maybe Leeds) the football world would be a better place too :D

FIA welcomes tough line on racism

 

The FIA has welcomed undertakings by the Spanish motorsport authorities that they will act to prevent a repeat of the racist abuse directed at Lewis Hamilton during pre-season testing at Barcelona.

 

After the British driver was targeted by hostile spectators last week, the FIA put the Spanish motorsport federation (REFA) on notice that any recurrence of such scenes would lead to sanctions – widely interpreted as a clear warning that Spain could be stripped of its two grands prix.

 

While Formula 1’s governing body has been pleased with the proactive response of REFA and the Circuit de Catalunya, it says it will closely monitor the behaviour of spectators at forthcoming tests in Spain to ensure the measures are effective.

 

“We have not yet received a full report but we have received clear assurances from the circuit and sporting authorities in Spain that measures are now in place to prevent any repetition of the kind of racist abuse witnessed last weekend,” an FIA spokesman was quoted as saying in the Guardian.

 

“We understand that such abuse is a criminal offence under Spanish law and the authorities will not hesitate to act if required.

 

“This zero tolerance approach is welcomed by the FIA and we will monitor events very closely at the forthcoming Formula 1 tests to ensure that everything is done to prevent any repeat of those appalling scenes in Barcelona.

 

“Racism has no place in motorsport and racists will not be allowed to hijack our sport from the many millions of genuine motor racing fans from across the world.”

 

Hamilton is due to return to Spain for further tests later this month, at Jerez next week and then at Barcelona from February 25.

 

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