Bahrain calls off F1 season's opening race

Kingdom pulls out of its biggest event due to anti-government protests

LONDON - Bahrain Grand Prix organizers called off Formula One's March 13 season-opener on Monday after a week of anti-government protests that left seven dead and hundreds injured.

While the authorities hoped for a possible rescheduling of the country's biggest sporting event, a final preseason test organized for March 3 at the Sakhir circuit was cancelled outright.