Olympic Stadium
Olympic Stadium is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games. An Olympic stadium is the site of the opening and closing ceremonies. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words Olympic Stadium as part of their names, such as stadiums in Amsterdam, Berlin, Helsinki and Paris. Olympic Stadium may also be named a multi-purpose stadium which hosts Olympic sports.[1]
In the case of the Summer Olympic Games, athletics competitions and the football final are traditionally held in the Olympic Stadium. Exceptions to this have occurred though at the 1900, 1996 and 2016 Summer Olympics as well as at the 2010 and 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games.
Early Winter Olympic Games often used figure skating venues as focal points. These were often designated as the Olympic Stadium, usually hosting the opening and closing ceremonies.
A number of stadiums have been used in more than one Olympics, in those cities that have held the Games more than once.
Lysgårdsbakken was the main stadium of a Winter Olympics and a Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG). Bergiselschanze was the main stadium of two Winter Olympics and one Winter YOG. Olympiahalle jointly shared the Olympic Stadium role with Bergiselschanze during the two Winter Olympics, but not during the Winter YOG. Only one stadium, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, has been the main stadium of two Summer Olympics (and it will be a main stadium a third time during the 2028 games). In addition to the inaugural Summer Olympics, Panathinaiko Stadio was also the main stadium of the only Intercalated Games held. In 2022 Beijing National Stadium will join these in being the main stadium at two Olympics, but with a special distinction: it will become the only stadium to have been such at both a Summer and a Winter Olympics.
A number, including both the Panathinaiko Stadio and the Vélodrome de Vincennes, have hosted events at subsequent Olympics. The London Games of 2012 were not opened and closed at the rebuilt Wembley Stadium, the site of the 1948 Olympic Stadium, but instead at a new stadium in Stratford. Wembley was, however, the venue for some 2012 Olympic football matches. Likewise, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which was the centrepiece stadium for the 1956 games, later hosted the first games of the Sydney 2000 football tournament. Lake Placid's 1930 Olympic Stadium was utilized in the 1980 Lake Placid games as the speed skating venue. Olympiahalle hosted figure skating and short-track speed skating during the 2012 Winter Youth Olympics. Stockholm Olympic Stadium hosted equestrian events for the 1956 Summer Olympics (while the 1956 games were held in Melbourne, Australia, quarantine restrictions prevented equestrian events from being held domestically, thus Stockholm, Sweden hosted the 1956 equestrian competitions).
Stadia
| Image | Olympics | Season | Stadium | Native name | City | Country | New/old | Capacity | Existing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 1896 | Summer | Panathenaic Stadium | Παναθηναϊκό στάδιο | Athens | .svg.png){kind=small} | Existing | 80,000 | Yes |
1A_Square.jpg) | 1900 | Summer | Vincennes Velodrome (ceremony) | Vélodrome de Vincennes | Paris |  | Existing | 50,000 | Yes |
| Croix-Catelan Stadium (athletics) | Stade Croix-Catelan | Existing | No | ||||||
 | 1904 | Summer | Francis Field | St. Louis | .svg.png){kind=small} | New | 19,000 | Yes | |
 | 1906 Intercalated | Summer | Panathenaic Stadium | Παναθηναϊκό στάδιο | Athens | | Existing | 80,000 | Yes |
 | 1908 | Summer | White City Stadium | London |  | New | 68,000 | No | |
 | 1912 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Stockholms Olympiastadion | Stockholm |  | New | 20,000 | Yes |
 | 1920 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Olympisch Stadion | Antwerp | .svg.png){kind=small} | New | 12,771 | Yes |
 | 1924 | Winter | Olympic Stadium | Stade Olympique de Chamonix | Chamonix | | New | 45,000 | Yes |
 | 1924 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir | Paris | | Existing | 45,000 | Yes |
 | 1928 | Winter | St. Moritz Olympic Ice Rink | Badrutts Park | St. Moritz |  | New | 4,000 | Yes |
 | 1928 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Olympisch Stadion | Amsterdam |  | Existing, renovated | 31,600 | Yes |
 | 1932 | Winter | Lake Placid Speedskating Oval | Lake Placid | .svg.png){kind=small} | New | 7,500 | Yes | |
 | 1932 | Summer | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Los Angeles | | Existing/expanded | 101,574 | Yes | |
 | 1936 | Winter | Große Olympiaschanze | Garmisch-Partenkirchen | .svg.png){kind=small} | Existing | 40,000 | Yes | |
.jpg) | 1936 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Olympiastadion | Berlin | | New | 110,000 | Yes |
 | 1948 | Winter | St. Moritz Olympic Ice Rink | Badrutts Park | St. Moritz | | Existing | 4,000 | Yes |
.jpg) | 1948 | Summer | Wembley Stadium | London | | Existing | 82,000 | No (replaced) | |
 | 1952 | Winter | Bislett Stadium | Bislett stadion | Oslo |  | Existing | 20,000 | No (replaced) |
 | 1952 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Olympiastadion | Helsinki |  | Existing | 70,000 | Yes |
 | 1956 | Winter | Stadio Olimpico Del Ghiaccio | Cortina d'Ampezzo |  | Existing, renovated | 12,000 | Yes | |
 | 1956 | Summer | Melbourne Cricket Ground | Melbourne | .svg.png){kind=small} | Existing | 115,000 | Yes | |
 | 1960 | Winter | Blyth Arena | Squaw Valley | .svg.png){kind=small} | New | 8,500 | No | |
 | Squaw Valley Olympic Skating Rink | Temporary | No | ||||||
 | 1960 | Summer | Stadio Olimpico | Rome | | Existing | 90,000 | Yes | |
 | 1964 | Winter | Bergiselschanze (opening ceremony) | Innsbruck |  | Existing | 26,000 | Yes | |
 | Olympiahalle (closing ceremony) | New | 10,836 | Yes | |||||
 | 1964 | Summer | National Stadium | 国立競技場 | Tokyo |  | Existing | 71,556 | No (replaced) |
 | 1968 | Winter | Olympic Stadium (opening ceremony) | Stade olympique | Grenoble | | Temporary | 60,000 | No |
 | Le Stade de Glace (closing ceremony) | New | 12,000 | Yes | |||||
 | 1968 | Summer | Estadio Olímpico Universitario | Mexico City |  | Existing | 83,700 | Yes | |
 | 1972 | Winter | Makomanai Open Stadium (opening ceremony) | 真駒内屋外競技場 | Sapporo | | New | 30,000 | Yes |
 | Makomanai Ice Arena (closing ceremony) | 真駒内屋内競技場 | New | 11,500 | Yes | ||||
 | 1972 | Summer | Olympiastadion | Munich |  | New | 80,000 | Yes | |
.jpg) | 1976 | Winter | Bergiselschanze (opening ceremony) | Innsbruck | | Existing | 26,000 | Yes | |
 | Olympiahalle (closing ceremony) | Existing | 10,836 | Yes | |||||
 | 1976 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Stade olympique | Montreal | .svg.png){kind=small} | New | 70,000 | Yes |
 | 1980 | Winter | Lake Placid Equestrian Stadium (opening ceremony) | Lake Placid |  | Temporary stadium at existing equestrian grounds | 30,000 | No | |
 | Olympic Center Arena (closing ceremony) | New | 10,000 | Yes | |||||
 | 1980 | Summer | Grand Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium | Большая спортивная арена центрального стадиона имени Ленина | Moscow |  | Existing | 103,000 | Yes |
 | 1984 | Winter | Olympic Stadium (opening ceremony) | Olimpijski stadion | Sarajevo | .svg.png){kind=small} | Existing | 50,000 | Yes |
 | Zetra Olympic Hall (closing ceremony) | Olimpijska dvorana Zetra | New | 12,000 | Yes | ||||
| 1984 | Summer | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Los Angeles | | Existing | 92,516 | Yes | |
 | 1988 | Winter | McMahon Stadium | Calgary | | Existing, renovated | 38,205 | Yes | |
 | 1988 | Summer | Seoul Olympic Stadium | 서울올림픽주경기장 | Seoul |  | Existing | 100,000 | Yes |
 | 1992 | Winter | Theatre of Ceremonies | Théâtre des Cérémonies | Albertville | | Temporary | 35,000 | No |
 | 1992 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc Estadio Olímpico de Montjuïc | Barcelona |  | Existing | 60,000 | Yes |
 | 1994 | Winter | Lysgårdsbakkene Ski Jumping Arena | Lysgårdsbakkene hoppanlegg | Lillehammer | | New | 35,000 | Yes |
 | 1996 | Summer | Centennial Olympic Stadium | Atlanta | | New | 85,000 | Yes (downsized as Georgia State Stadium) | |
 | 1998 | Winter | Nagano Olympic Stadium | 長野オリンピックスタジアム | Nagano | | New | 30,000 | Yes |
 | 2000 | Summer | Stadium Australia | Sydney | | New | 114,714 | Yes | |
 | 2002 | Winter | Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium | Salt Lake City | | Existing, replacement | 45,017 | Yes | |
 | 2004 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | Ολυμπιακό Κεντρικό Στάδιο Αθήνας "Σπύρος Λούης" | Athens |  | Existing, renovated | 72,000 | Yes |
 | 2006 | Winter | Stadio Olimpico di Torino | Turin | | Existing | 28,000 | Yes | |
 | 2008 | Summer | Beijing National Stadium | 国家体育场 | Beijing |  | New | 91,000 | Yes |
 | 2010 | Winter | BC Place Stadium | Vancouver | | Existing, renovated | 54,500 | Yes | |
 | 2010 Youth | Summer | The Float@Marina Bay | Pentas Terapung Teluk Marina 滨海湾浮动舞台 மரீனா பே மிதக்கும் மேடை (Tamil) | Marina Bay |  | Existing | 30,000 | Yes |
 | 2012 Youth | Winter | Bergiselschanze | Innsbruck | | Existing | 26,000 | Yes | |
.jpg) | 2012 | Summer | Olympic Stadium | London | | New | 80,000 | Yes | |
 | 2014 | Winter | Fisht Olympic Stadium | Олимпийский стадион | Sochi |  | New | 40,000 | Yes |
 | 2014 Youth | Summer | Olympic Stadium | 南京奥林匹克体育中心 | Nanjing | | Existing | 61,443 | Yes |
 | 2016 Youth | Winter | Lysgårdsbakkene Ski Jumping Arena (opening ceremony) | Lysgårdsbakkene hoppanlegg | Lillehammer | | Existing | 35,000 | Yes |
 | Håkons Hall (closing ceremony) | Existing | 11,500 | Yes | |||||
 | 2016 | Summer | Maracanã Stadium (opening and closing ceremony, football) | Estádio do Maracanã | Rio de Janeiro |  | Existing | 74,738 | Yes |
 | João Havelange Olympic Stadium (athletics and football) | Estádio Olímpico João Havelange | Existing/expanded | 60,000[2] | Yes | ||||
.jpg) | 2018 | Winter | Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium | 평창 올림픽 스타디움 | Pyeongchang | | Temporary | 35,000 | No |
 | 2018 Youth | Summer | Obelisco de Buenos Aires (opening ceremony) | Obelisco de Buenos Aires | Buenos Aires |  | Existing/Temporary | N/A | Yes |
.jpg) | Buenos Aires Youth Olympic Village (closing ceremony)[3] | Existing/expanded | 15,500 | Yes | |||||
| 2020 Youth | Winter | Vaudoise Arena | Vaudoise Aréna | Lausanne | | New | 9,600 | Yes | |
 | 2020 | Summer | Japan National Stadium | 国立競技場 (tentative name) | Tokyo | | Existing, replacement | 68,000 | Yes |
 | 2022 | Winter | Beijing National Stadium | 国家体育场 | Beijing | | Existing | 80,000 | Yes |
 | 2024 | Summer | Stade de France | Paris | | Existing | 78,338 | Yes | |
 | 2026 | Winter | San Siro (opening ceremony) | Milan | | Existing | 80,000 | Yes | |
 | Verona Arena (closing ceremony) | Verona | Existing | 15,000 | Yes | ||||
| 2028 | Summer | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (formal opening and cultural closing ceremony, athletics) | Los Angeles | | Existing/renovated | 70,516 | Yes | |
 | SoFi Stadium[†] (cultural opening and formal closing ceremony, possible exhibition sports and football) | Inglewood, California | In construction | 100,000 | Opening in 2020 | ||||
^ †: Under present IOC policy, corporate naming rights are disallowed on venues during the duration of the Games.[4]
Other major events held at Olympic Stadiums
References
- Olympic Stadium Archived 2014-03-13 at the Wayback Machine. Big Olympic Encyclopedia. Moscow 2006.
- "João Havelange Olympic Stadium". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on 4 February 2016. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
- "El gobierno porteño gastará $15 millones en la Ceremonia de Clausura de los Juegos Olímpicos de la Juventud". Revista Qué. 25 June 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
- Murphy, Bill, Jr. "United Airlines Spent $69 Million on This Stadium Naming Deal, But They're Not Getting This 1 Important Thing". Inc. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
External links
- Olympic Past and Future Stadiums - BALLPARKS.com
- Summer Olympic Stadiums (Stadia) 1896 - (2020) on Google Maps (select "Sat View")
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