The Life-Cycle of Olympic Venues: Do They Stay in Use After the Games?
Real journalism holds power accountable
Since 2015, The Wire has done just that.
But we can continue only with your support.
Olympic Games are big affairs that require massive infrastructure projects to build the various stadiums and venues.
Many of the sports have specific requirements – fake whitewater and rocks for kayaking, huge slopes for ski jumps, or sand for beach volleyball. On top of that, these venues need to be able to support large crowds and the technology needed to manage the events.
As former Victorian premier Dan Andrews discovered in 2023, hosting big sporting events costs big money.
The Tokyo Olympics are estimated to have cost A$23 billion dollars, a lot of which was spent building infrastructure.
A 2022 report from the International Olympic Committee revealed that 85% of the stadiums, venues and structures used in the Olympics are currently still in use.
But how are they used, were they new structures and what happened to the 15% of venues that have fallen into disuse?
Stadiums
1. Panathenaic Stadium in 1896 - Athens, Greece. Built and modified since circa 330 BC, it was used in the first modern Olympics in 1896. Via Wikimedia Commons
2. Panathenaic Stadium in 2021 - Athens, Greece. Currently used for various purposes. George E. Koronaios, via Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
3. Memorial Coliseum in 1932 - Los Angeles, USA. Used in the 1932 Summer Olympics International Olympic Committee. Via International Olympic Committee.
4. Memorial Coliseum, 2006 football game between the University of Oregon Ducks and the USC Trojans. Currently used for various sporting events. Bobak Ha'Eri via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.5
5. Olympic Stadium – Rome, Italy. Used in the 1960 Summer Olympics. Wikimedia Commons
6. Rome Olympic Stadium (background) in 2024. Currently used as a football ground. Messapi, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
7. Francis Olympic Field, start of the 1904 marathon race - St Louis, USA. Used in the 1904 Summer Olympics Messapi, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
8. Francis Olympic Field in 2018 - St Louis, USA. Currently used by Washington University. WashU Bears/X (Twitter)
9. Nippon Budokan building in 2018 - Tokyo, Japan. Used in the 1964 Summer Olympics. Via Wikimedia Commons, Kakidai, CC BY-SA 4.0.
10. Fisht Arena in Sochi, Russia. Used in the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. Via Wikimedia Commons, Arne Müseler, arne-mueseler.com , CC-BY-SA-3.0.
The all-marble Panathenaic Stadium hosted the first modern Olympics in Athens, Greece in 1896. It was used again during the 2004 Olympics (archery and the marathon finish) and is now a popular tourist attraction that has hosted events such as concerts and fashion shows in recent years.
Francis Olympic Field in St Louis in the United States was used as the main venue for the 1904 Summer Olympics. It is the oldest Olympic stadium still in regular use for official sporting events.
It has been renovated several times and is currently used by Washington University’s track and field, cross country, football, and soccer teams.
Many Olympic stadiums continue to be used for local, national and international sports such as athletics and soccer, as well as large concerts and performances.
For example, the 1960 Summer Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy is the home ground of the national rugby union team and soccer clubs Roma and Lazio. It has also hosted matches in the 1990 FIFA Soccer World Cup, UEFA Soccer Champions League, World Athletics Championships and more.
Fisht Stadium in Sochi, Russia hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. It also hosted games in the 2018 Soccer World Cup (including Australia vs Peru) and is now the home stadium for soccer team PFC Sochi.
!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r
This article went live on August first, two thousand twenty four, at twenty-three minutes past eight in the morning.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.