Olympic Stadium

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Montreal's Olympic Stadium

The Olympic Stadium is the name usually given to the big centrepiece sports arena of the Summer Olympic Games. Traditionally, the opening ceremony and the track & field competitions are held in the Olympic Stadium. Many, though by no means all, of these arenas actually contain the words Olympic Stadium as part of their name. The Winter Olympic Games do not have a central Olympic Stadium, however some edifices are designated as the Olympic Stadium, which usually hosts the opening and closing ceremonies.

[edit] Summer Olympic Stadia

Some of the Olympic stadiums have usually been built specifically to host the Olympics, as opposed to being an already existing facility. Others have been already completed when their city has been awarded the Olympics, and have had the title added:

[edit] Specially Built

The 1928 Amsterdam Olympic Stadium, designed by Jan Wils, won the gold medal in architecture at the 1928 Olympics.

• Olympisch Stadion - Amsterdam
• Olympisch Stadion - Antwerp
• Centennial Olympic Stadium - Atlanta
• Olympiastadion - Berlin (1916, 1936)
• Olympiastadion - Helsinki (1940, 1952)
• Olympic Stadium - London (2012)
• Le Stade Olympique - Montreal (1976)
• Olympiastadion - Munich
• Stade Olympique de Colombes - Paris (1924)
• Stadio Olimpico - Rome
• Stockholms Olympiastadion - Stockholm

[edit] Already Constructed

• National Olympic Stadium - Tokyo (1964)
• Estadio Olímpico Universitario - Mexico City (1968)
• Jamsil Olympic Stadium - Seoul (1988)
• Estadi Olímpic de Montjuic - Barcelona (1992)
• Olympiako Stadio Athinas 'Spyros Louis' - Athens (2004)^[1]

There have been a number of other stadia that have been used as the main stadium for the Olympics, but which have not incorporated the words Olympic Stadium into their name - again, some of these were specially built for the games, while others were already existing:

[edit] Specially Built

• Francis Field - St. Louis (1904)
• White City Stadium - London (1908)
• Stadium Australia - Sydney (2000)
• Beijing National Stadium - Beijing (2008)

[edit] Already Built

• Panathinaiko Stadio - Athens (1896)
• Vélodrome de Vincennes - Paris (1900)
• Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum - Los Angeles (1932, 1984)
• Wembley Stadium - London (1944, 1948)
• Melbourne Cricket Ground - Melbourne (1956)
• Lenin Stadium - Moscow (1980)

In addition to these, there are other stadia called Olympic Stadium around the world, which have been built as part of a prospective bid for the Games:

• Atatürk Olympic Stadium - Istanbul
• Estadio Olímpico de la Cartuja - Seville
• Olympiako Stadio Athinas 'Spyros Louis' - Athens (1996) Note: subsequently used for 2004 Summer Olympic Games
• Guangdong Olympic Stadium - Guangzhou, China (2008) Note: the Guangdong Olympic Stadium was intended to be the Olympic Stadium for the 2008 games until the Beijing National Stadium was proposed.

Some have simply been named that way:

• Olympic Stadium - Ashgabat
• Estádio Olímpico Monumental - Porto Alegre

[edit] Used Twice

A number of stadia have been used in more than one Olympics, in those cities that have held the Games twice. While only one (the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum) has been the main stadium twice, both the Panathinaiko Stadio and the Vélodrome de Vincennes have hosted events at subsequent Olympics. Wembley Stadium will also be used again at the 2012 Games, although that stadium is a completely rebuilt structure on the same site as the 1948 stadium. The only stadium to have been used twice, but only host one Olympics, is the Melbourne Cricket Ground which was host venue in 1956 and hosted the first game of the Sydney 2000 football tournament.

[edit] Other Major Events

• Athens - Olympiako Stadio - 1983 European Cup Final, 1994 UEFA Champions League Final, 1997 World Championships in Athletics, 2007 UEFA Champions League Final,WRC Acropolis Rally SuperSpecial Stage 2005, WRCAcropolis Rally SuperSpecial Stage 2006, 2006 IAAF World Cup in Athletics
• Berlin - Olympiastadion - 2006 FIFA World Cup Final
• Helsinki - Olympiastadion - 1983 and 2005 World Championships in Athletics
• London - Wembley Stadium (original) - 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, 1996 European Football Championship Final
• London - White City Stadium - 1934 Empire Games
• Los Angeles - Memorial Coliseum - Super Bowl I (1967), Super Bowl VII (1973), 1959 World Series
• Melbourne - Melbourne Cricket Ground - 1992 Cricket World Cup Final, 2006 Commonwealth Games, annual Australian Football League Grand Final
• Munich - Olympiastadion - 1974 FIFA World Cup Final, 1979 European Cup Final, 1988 European Football Championship Final, 1993 and 1997 UEFA Champions League Finals
• Paris - Stade Olympique de Colombes - 1938 FIFA World Cup Final
• Rome - Stadio Olimpico - 1977 and 1984 European Cup Finals, 1987 World Championships in Athletics, 1990 FIFA World Cup Final, 1996 UEFA Champions League Final
• Sydney - Stadium Australia (now Telstra Stadium) - 2003 Rugby World Cup Final, annual NRL Grand Final
• Tokyo - National Olympic Stadium - 1991 World Championships in Athletics

[edit] Winter Olympic Stadia

[edit] Comprehensive list

[edit] Purpose built Olympic Stadia for the Games

• Lysgårdsbakkene Olympic Stadium - Lillehammer - 1994 Winter Olympics
• Minami Sports Park - Nagano - 1998 Winter Olympics
• Ceremonies Theatre - Albertville - 1992 Winter Olympics (the first temporary Olympic Stadium)

[edit] Existing stadia renamed for the Games

• Stadio Olimpico - 2006 Winter Olympics Turin, Italy (was "Stadio Comunale di Torino", will be called "Stadio Grande Torino" after the Games)
• Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium - 2002 Winter Olympics Salt Lake City, Utah, USA (was "Rice-Eccles Stadium" before and after the games).

[edit] Existing stadia used for the Games

• McMahon Stadium - 1988 Winter Olympics Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• BC Place - 2010 Winter Olympics Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (the first indoor Olympic Stadium). NOTE: The Olympic Stadium in Montreal, was to have had a retractable roof, however it was not completed in time for the 1976 Summer Games

[edit] Olympic Stadiums in Popular Culture

The original manga version of Katsuhiro Otomo's epic Akira featured an Olympic Stadium. Initially built for the upcoming Olympics hosted by the fictional future city of Neo-Tokyo, it was instead used as a lair by Tetsuo and Akira's Great Tokyo Empire.

[edit] External links

• Ballparks by Munsey & Suppes - Olympics

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