F1 to Hold Minute Silence Before GP

The world was shocked by the bombings in London, which is located just one hour away from the Silverstone circuit, and the organisers are determined to show defiance against them.

One source said of the decision: "It was important for Formula One to do something. It will show that international sporting events will not be affected by this sort of action."

Teams have run special liveries in the past in tribute to disaster victims, most notably following the 2001 attacks in the United States, but none have yet revealed plans to do so at Silverstone.

The race organisers have stepped up security around the circuit, checking the bags of all in attendance, but there are no concerns about the race being affected in any way, and World Champion Michael Schumacher said he did not expect Formula One events to be attacked.

"I don't think Grand Prix racing is a target," Schumacher told reporters yesterday at Silverstone. "It's an event which has been scheduled for a long time so the security measures were already well programmed. We are all sad for what happened, but I think it's right to race because all of us want life to go on, because it's right to think about the future."

Schumacher himself was in his London hotel when the attacks happened but said he and wife Corinna were unaware of what was happening until told about it on the way to Silverstone.

"It was strange: my wife and I went down for breakfast at 9:00 and it looked like a normal day," the German said. "Only when going to the helipad did we realize that something serious must have happened, and there we learnt about the attacks and we realized how lucky we were.

"It almost looks like F1 is destined to chase tragedies, the bad things of this world, the threats from nature. First the Twin Towers in New York, then the Japanese typhoon, and now these horrible things which just happened in London.

"But we have to go on, always for the same reason: there's people who watch and love this sport and we need to do what's possible to give them a smile."