DUBAI: Bahraini police fired tear-gas and sound bombs to disperse hundreds of demonstrators who gathered outside the capital to protest against this month’s Formula One Grand Prix, witnesses said yesterday.

“Your race is a crime,” the protesters chanted in reference to motor racing bosses who have insisted on keeping the Bahrain Grand Prix on the Formula One calendar, witnesses said.

Clashes erupted when anti-riot police intervened to disperse the crowd and demonstrators responded with Molotov cocktails, the witnesses said.

One policeman was injured, the Interior Ministry said on Twitter. He was hit by an improvised bomb detonated remotely, it said.

Former world champion Damon Hill has called on FIA president Jean Todt to take an ethical stance on the event.