2008 marks the 40th Canadian Grand Prix and its 30th appearance in Montreal.

The first Canadian GP was held in Mosport in 1967, followed by a further seven at that venue. Mont- Tremblant played host on two occasions.

Formula One has been staged in Montreal since 1978, on a circuit named after the winner of the inaugural race – Gilles Villeneuve.

Since last year the race track has seen a number of modifications. For one thing, a safety fence has been installed along the wall into which Kubica spectacularly crashed in 2007. This shall ensure that cars glide along it rather than crashing into the wall as last year.

The paddock has also been modernised to provide teams with new offices and other facilities.

The site on Notre Dame island where the non-permanent race track is located was the venue for the 1967 World Expo as well as the 1976 Olympics.  

Montreal is in eastern Canada and, with 1.6 million inhabitants, is the country’s second- largest city. It is also the capital of Quebec Province, in which 80 percent of the population are French-speakers. 3.7 million people live in the greater Montreal area.

The city is on the Île de Montreal at the confluence of the Ottawa and St Lawrence rivers.

The 233-metre-high Mont Royal in the centre of the island gave its name to the city, which was founded by French discoverers in 1642 as Ville-Marie-de-Montreal.

The Port de Montreal is still an important stop for all ships en route to the Great Lakes.

The region’s climate is dominated by extremely cold winters and brief, hot summers.