News
The reopening of the Berlin Olympic Stadium - Party of the Year
Two-day stadium fest with a gala show and football game
2004-07-22
The Berlin Olympic Stadium is shining with a new brilliance. On July 31 and
August 1, 2004, this historical sporting venue will be presented to the public
following four years of top-to-bottom renovation. “We are putting on the
Berlin party of the year”, promised Winfrid Schwank, who became the
director of the Stadionbetreibergesellschaft Olympiastadion GmbH (Olympic
Stadium Management Company) in February 2004.
Football World Championships 2006 with the Finals
In the future, there will be room for a total of 76,000 spectators in the
Berlin Olympic Stadium, where a total of 6 games, including the finals, of the
Football World Championships in 2006 will take place. How well-fitted the new
Charlottenburg stadium really is will be tested on September 8 with a national
game of Germany against Brazil.
The anticipated guest list at the two-day opening celebration includes
German Home Secretary Otto Schily, World Championship head organiser Franz
Beckenbauer, and the president of the German Sport Association Manfred von
Richthofen, as well as numerous other prominent guests. The show and
entertainment will include pop-stars Nena, US superstar Pink and star director
Daniel Barenboim with his West Eastern Divan Orchestra.
The moderator of the programme on July 31st will be the ZDF talk master and
sport commentator Johannes B. Kerner. At 4 p.m. on Sunday, August 1st, the
football 1st league team Hertha BSC will play Besiktas Istanbul in an
"historical" friendship game.
5-star arena
Even before its renovation, the new Berlin Olympic Stadium was considered to be
one of the most modern and architecturally demanding sport and event venues in
the world (so to say, a 5-star arena).
The conceptual planning was undertaken by the renowned architectural office
Gerkan, Marg and Partner (gmp), which recently received the German Steel
Construction Prize (10,000€) for the complicated roof construction.
Implanted in the roof are 320 2000-watt lights in a "Ring of Fire",
which together with a high tech sound system can produce great acoustic-optical
effects, unusual for an open sport arena. The costs for the comprehensive
renovations and reconstruction work total 242 million Euros, of which 200
million were carried by the federal government and the remaining 42 million
through a loan acquired by the construction company Walter-Bau.
The changes in the Olympic Stadium, which did not alter the outer shell,
include the lowering by 2.65 metres of the playing field and track and field
instalments, the creation of 113 VIP boxes (which can be rented by companies),
and most importantly, the construction of a roof over all 76,000 spectator
seats, and two animated score boards In addition, there are new changing
facilities, quiet and relaxation rooms, and space for the athletes to prepare
for competition, as well as drop-off and parking facilities for over 600
vehicles, and much more.
Each year up to 30 large-scale events are to take place here. In addition,
capacities within the stadium are to be rented about 100 times a
year—including the representative Coubertin-Hall within the VIP lounge.
The stadium now also includes a chapel, which, as the currently largest
ecumenical stadium prayer room, is also to be used for baptisms and
weddings.
Around the stadium there will be 30 informative signs on the moving history
of the Olympic Stadium and former Reichssportfeldes (Empire Sports Field),
which in 1936 was the site of the infamous Summer Olympic Games, misused by the
Nazi regime. There will also be a centrally located light column made from
glass and cement as an “informational point”.
A completely new addition is the blue-white 400m track (in the club colours
of Hertha BSC), which will be initiated on September 12, 2004 at the
international stadium sports festival (ISTAF) by the fastest men and women in
the world.
Application to host the Track and Field World Championships
2009
Berlin hopes to “gather points” for the acquisition of the Track
and Field World Championships 2009 with a full stadium at the ISTAF on
September 12. The decision for or against Berlin will be made at the IAAF
congress on December 9, 2004. Next May the stadium will also be the central
venue of the International German Gymnastics Festival.
The Berlin Olympic Stadium management company offers daily viewing of the
stadium, as well as regular thematic tours around the 100-hectare compound. The
Berlin Senate has put together a concept for the future development of an
"Olympic Park", which step by step is to become a sport and leisure
arena for top athletes as well as for the general public.
Dr. Detlef Kuhlmann
Further information about the Berlin Olympic Stadium is available online
at:
www.olympiastadion-berlin.de
Editorial inquiries should be directed by email to:
presse@olympiastadion-berlin.de.
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