Sepang International Circuit (SIC), promoter of the Formula One PETRONAS Malaysian Grand Prix, today kicked off a special two-week promotion drive; targeting schoolchildren and students of higher learning institutions to purchase tickets for the F1 race.

"The team will be visiting schools and colleges in Negeri Sembilan, Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur. By the end of next week, we hope to have the whole of Hillstand G will be fully filled,” says SIC General Manager Ahmad Mustafa.

“SIC is offering a special discount of 50 percent for these students so that they can actually come and see the race live in Sepang. The purpose of this programme is more towards generating interest among the young and to woo them to be active players in motorsports,” added Ahmad.

The promotion team, however, will not be selling tickets during their rounds as the privileged students tickets can only be purchased at the circuit or at the upcoming Formula One road show in Gurney Plaza, Pulau Pinang this weekend.

With the promotional offer, students can purchase the Hillstand G tickets for only RM50 to catch the race on March 21. They can also come on March 19 and 20 and watch the official free practice and qualifying for free.

“We have decided to allow all students to come to Hillstand G and see the Formula One free practice and qualifying session on Friday and Saturday without any charges this year. This is our special offer for the students,” said Ahmad.

Hillstand G, which has a full capacity of 20,000 spectators and exclusively for students, provides vantage view of the race as the spectators can catch all the excitement and thrills happening at Turn 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.

SIC had set a target of 120,000 for the race, which is the sixth edition of the Formula One PETRONAS Malaysian Grand Prix that traced back to 1999. Last year, SIC had a record turnout of 101,485 spectators on the race day.

Malaysia will host Round 2 of the 2004 Formula One World Championship from 19th to 21st March. The season opens in Melbourne this week before proceeding to Sepang and 16 other circuits around the world including to Bahrain and Shanghai for the first time.

Tickets for the Sepang F1 race can be purchased at all SIC-organised roadshows, KL Sentral, Subang Parade Kuala Lumpur and via internet at www.malaysiangp.com.my.

All pictures courtesy of Sepang International Circuit.