Cerić: We are not giving up on the idea of bringing Formula E to Sarajevo, new talks follow

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Sarajevo City Council did not vote today on the proposal to allocate 100,000 euros for the development of a feasibility study on organizing a Formula E (FE) race in the BiH capital. The proposal was simply withdrawn from the agenda.

Had the proposal been accepted, the FE technical team would have come to Sarajevo very soon to examine the conditions for holding this automotive spectacle. As it stands, this will not happen. At least not in the near future.

However, this does not mean that all hope is lost that a Formula E race will be held in our capital city.

British entrepreneur of BiH origin Samir Cerić, director of the company Sarajevo Sports International, which initiated this idea, emphasizes that he will not give up on the intention to hold this event on the streets of Sarajevo.

- Unfortunately, today an exceptional opportunity was missed for the technical team from London to come to Sarajevo as early as next week, that is, for us to become an official candidate for organizing the race. Nevertheless, we will not give up so easily, primarily because of the strong lobby we have built here in London.

The leaders of Formula E are still interested in the idea of our capital city hosting the race, although it is clear that at this moment there is no adequate political environment, at least at the city administration level, for such a thing. Therefore, in the coming period, we intend to talk with some other political factors, elevate the story to the level of the Canton and the state, and seek support there - he pointed out.

Ceric emphasizes that he is already starting to work on a kind of Plan B regarding the organization of the Formula E race in Sarajevo.

- It is evident that the City, with the exception of Mayor Abdulah Skaka, who was very favorable to the idea, has neither the intention nor the capacity to carry this project. However, we already have information that some other levels of government in BiH would be ready to support the organization of the FE race, which in this situation is perhaps even better news, given the somewhat more modest budget of the City.

It is a fortunate circumstance that I had already left the door open at the Formula E headquarters in Hammersmith for the possibility of us getting the organization of the race in 2020, so we are starting to work on that from today. The next step, therefore, is talks with other representatives of the political scene in BiH, who have already contacted us regarding this matter, and we have long-standing contacts with companies that want to get involved in the project - concluded Samir Cerić.