The new and renewed Olympic venues, along with the other infrastructure
projects, is Greece's legacy from the 2004 Olympic Summer
Games. The gave an important boost to sports in Athens. Click
on the venue or complex of your choice on the map to see
detailed information.
The
Olympic Sailing Center is located in the coastal area of southern
Attica. The new construction has a capacity of 1.600 seats
and it was constructed by the Ministry for the Environment,
Physical Planning and Public Works.
Total
capacity
1.600
spectators
Total
land surface
336.289
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
34.7
km
Completion
date
31
January 2004
Official
opening
2
August 2004
Ano
Liossia Olympic Hall Athens
This
wrestling and judo hall is situated in Ano Liossia, in the
northwest region of Athens. The construction area covers a
surface of 35.000 m² surrounded by supplementary support
areas such as warm up areas, athletes’ rest rooms, training
areas, change rooms, medical-hygiene areas, administration,
National Federation offices, security services areas, pressroom,
spectators services areas, recreation areas etc.
Total
capacity
9.000
spectators
Total
land surface
65.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
17
km
Completion
date
31
January 2004
Official
opening
11
August 2004
Faliro coastal zone Olympic complex
Athens
The
Faliro Coastal Zone is a completely new venue with 8.100 seats,
which hosted the taekwondo events and the handball preliminary
games. The Sports Pavilion together with the Olympic Beach
Volleyball Center, the Marina and the Esplanade are included
in a wider urban area redevelopment project of the coastal
zone.
Olympic Sports Pavilion Athens
The
Sports Pavilion together with the Olympic Beach Volleyball
Center, the Marina and the Esplanade are included in a wider
urban area redevelopment project of the coastal zone.
Total
capacity
8.100
spectators
Total
land surface
81.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
25
km
Completion
date
20
December 2003
Official
opening
12
August 2004
Olympic
Beach Volleyball Center Athens
The
Olympic Beach Volleyball Center in Faliro is a new court with
a 9.600 seating capacity. The fascinating sport of beach volleyball
became a dominant spectacle in the warm and sandy environment
of the Faliro Coastal Zone.
Total
capacity
9.600
spectators
Total
land surface
123.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
25
km
Completion
date
31
January 2004
Official
opening
2
August 2004
Peace
and Friendship Stadium Athens
The
famous Peace and Friendship Stadium, situated close to the
port of Piraeus on the coast of Faliro in the south of Athens,
is a jewel of modern architectural style. The stadium enjoyed
international prestige and an enviable reputation thanks to
its use as a venue for important European and international
sport championships as well as professional and commercial
fairs.
Its
renovation was undertaken by the General Secretariat of Sports
(GSS) and resulted in a 13.200 seated capacity stadium which
hosted volleyball during the Olympic Games.
Total
capacity
13.200
spectators
Total
land surface
81.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
25
km
Completion
date
30
June 2004
Official
opening
11
August 2004
Galatsi
Olympic Hall Athens
The
Olympic Hall in Galatsi, a suburb northwest of the center of
Athens, hosted the table tennis and the rhythmic gymnastics
events during the 2004 Athens Olympic Summer Games. It includes
a main building with 6.500 seats for the spectators along with
other surrounding areas, access roads, parking areas etc.
Total
capacity
6.500
spectators
Total
land surface
95.000
m² (approx.)
Distance
to Olympic Village
16
km
Completion
date
May
2004
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Goudi
Olympic Complex Athens
The
Goudi Olympic Complex was an important section in the whole
Olympic works program as it hosted modern pentathlon and the
badminton events. The Goudi Complex consists of two venues:
the Goudi Olympic Hall and the Olympic Modern Pentathlon Center.
The shooting and fencing disciplines of the pentathlon were
held at the Goudi Olympic Hall. It also hosted the badminton
events.
The
other three pentathlon disciplines (swimming, riding and running)
were held at the Olympic Modern Pentathlon Center. The complex
includes 2.500 seats for swimming, two 5.000 seats areas for
riding and running and 3.000 seats for fencing and shooting.
A temporary construction with 4.100 seats and built by the
Ministry of Environment, Public Welfare and Public Works hosted
the badminton.
The
Helliniko Olympic Complex, the former Athens Airport, is situated
south of Athens and includes five Olympic venues: indoor Arena
and fencing hall, Olympic baseball center, Olympic softball
stadium, Olympic canoe/kayak slalom center and the Olympic
hockey center.
Indoor
Arena and Fencing Hall Athens
Three
sporting events were hosted at the Indoor Arena and Fencing
Hall of the Helliniko Olympic Complex Athens: the preliminaries
of basketball and the finals of handball at the Indoor Arena
and the preliminaries and final of fencing at the Fencing Hall.
The Indoor Arena has a 14.100 seats area whereas the Fencing
Hall has two halls: one of 3.800 seats for the preliminaries
and 5.000 seats for the fencing finals. Both venues were the
result of additions and overlays to existing facilities.
Total
capacity
basketball:
14.100, handball: 13.000
Total
land surface
58.600
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
36.2
km
Completion
date
31
May 2004
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Olympic
Baseball Center Athens
The
Olympic Baseball Center, part of the Helliniko Olympic Complex,
in the south of Athens, is a new construction which hosted
baseball, a sport not very popular in Greece but well known
to the rest of the world. It consists of two main courts, one
of 8.700 and another of 4.000 seats.
Total
capacity
8.700
(field 1) and 4.000 (field 2)
Total
land surface
120.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
32.6
km
Completion
date
27
February 2004
Official
opening
12
August 2004
Olympic
Canoe/Kayak Slalom Center Athens
The
Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Center is part of the Helliniko
Olympic Complex and it can accommodate 8.000 spectators. The
venue is designed to operate as a sports Center consisting
of a competition course, a secondary training course and a
warm-up natural lake with a total area of 270.000 square meters.
It is located within the former Helliniko Airport of Athens,
northeast of the Helliniko Olympic Complex and it haf a total
area of 288.000 square meters. Between 22 and 25 April 2004,
the Athens Slalom Racing World Cup was held here.
Total
capacity
7.600
spectators
Total
land surface
288.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
32.3
km
Completion
date
31
March 2004
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Center Athens
The
Olympic Hockey Center is a new construction, in the south of
Athens, with one large pitch of 7.300 seats and a smaller one
of 2.100. It includes a warm-up pitch which is used for training.
Total
capacity
7.300
(pitch 1), 2.100 (pitch 2)
Total
land surface
115.173
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
33
km
Completion
date
29
February 2004
Official
opening
11
August 2004
Olympic
Softball stadium Athens
The
Olympic Softball Stadium is a new construction situated in
the heart of the Helliniko Olympic Complex in the south of
Athens. The venue consists of a main softball field with 4.800
seats, two warm-up fields and rooms for athletes, competition
management, media, and staff.
Total
capacity
4.800
spectators
Total
land surface
57.492
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
33
km
Completion
date
29
February 2004
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Karaiskaki
Stadium Athens
The
Karaiskaki Stadium is the second largest stadium in Athens.
It was used as the velodrome for the first modern Olympic Games
in 1896. In the 1960s it was renovated into the stadium that
still stands today. The stadium has been fully renovated and
transformed into a modern football stadium. It is located in
Faliro and has a capacity of 33.000 seats. During the Olympic
Games it hosted 11 games (preliminaries, quarter-finals and
semi-finals) of the Olympic football tournament as well as
the women’s final.
Total
capacity
33.000
spectators
Total
land surface
75.730
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
24
km
Completion
date
30
June 2004
Official
opening
2
August 2004
Olympic
equestrian center Athens
The
Olympic Equestrian Center of Markopoulo, completed in 2003,
hosted the Olympic and Paralympic equestrian Games in August
and September 2004. It is a state-of-the-art Olympic Center
in one of the best developed areas of Attica, in close proximity
to the International Eleftherios Venizelos Airport and the
Attica highway (Attiki Odos).
Covering
an area of 940.000 square meters, the Center comprises meeting
rooms and offices, viewing stands, competition and warm-up
areas, stabling facilities for 280 horses and parking lots.
The
competition grounds include: the main show jumping arena, a
grass area of 90x120 meters, the main sand dressage arena measuring
80x40 meters, a final warm-up area of 60x20 meters for dressage,
an indoor riding school of 70x30 meters, a general training/warm-up
area of 90x90, two more general training/warm-up maneges of
90x45 meters each with sand and three further training/warm-up
dressage areas of 60x20 meters each.
In
addition, there is a cross country course 5.710 meters in length,
with about 35 obstacles. The course has its own additional
grass warm-up paddock. The Olympic equestrian Center also hosted
the Olympic Test Event in August 2003. Since then, the Hellenic
Equestrian Federation has used the grounds to hold all its
international competitions, including world cups.
The
Olympic Equestrian Center is situated at about 8 kilometers
from the International Eleftherios Venizelos Airport and just
a short distance from Porto Rafti, a popular seaside resort.
The
Olympic Shooting Center in Markopoulo covers an area of 312.000
m². It consists of four main buildings with a total capacity
of 4.000 spectators which hosted the shooting events with mobile
and clay targets. Other facilities include restaurants, hostels,
indoor halls for finals, reception areas, press areas, greenery
and parking areas. The venue hosted the ISSF World Cup between
22-30 April 2004.
Total
capacity
4.000
spectators
Total
land surface
312.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
42
km
Completion
date
March
200
Official
opening
2
August 2004
Nikaia
Olympic Weightlifting Hall Athens
The
Olympic Weightlifting Hall in Nikaia, an area in the southwest
of the Attica region, consists of an indoor gym building. Weightlifting
is very popular in Greece and the hall was one of the first
projects to be planned and supported for the 2004 Olympic Games
by the General Secretariat of Sports. The venue has supplementary
areas for warming up, resting, changing, training, medical
care and hostels for the athletes as well as additional rooms
for security, press, spectators’ services and recreation.
Total
capacity
5.100
spectators
Total
land surface
8.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
29.5
km
Official
opening
14
August 2004
Olympic Sports Complex Athens
The
Athens Olympic Sports Complex (OAKA) is situated at Maroussi.
It was the center of the Olympic Summer Games 2004. The whole
area has been remodeled by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava
with monuments, gardens, futuristic passages and a characteristic
new blue glass roof which was added to the Olympic Stadium.
The
structure features two huge arches which support a massive
steel and glass roof above enormous stands. The arches caused
some concern for the games organizers as it was an engineering
feat in itself sliding them into position. With the construction
of the stadium running behind schedule, the organizers had
little room for error in maneuvering them into place. Despite
one or two minor hiccups, all went smoothly.
Also
located at the Olympic Sports Complex are the indoor hall (basketball),
the aquatic center (swimming, diving, water polo, synchronized
swimming), the Olympic tennis center and the velodrome.
Olympic
Aquatic Center Athens
The
Olympic Aquatic Center, which is located at the Athens Olympic
Sports Complex in Maroussi, hosted the swimming, water-polo,
synchronized swimming and diving events during the 2004 Olympic
Games. The aquatic Center consists of two outdoor and one indoor
pool.
Total
capacity
main
pool: 11.500, indoor pool: 6.200
synchronized swimming pool: 5.300
Total
land surface
78.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
14.5
km
Completion
date
End
of 2003
Official
opening
13
August 2004
Olympic
Indoor Hall Athens
Gymnastics
(artistic & trampoline) and the basketball (finals) took
place in the Olympic Indoor Hall, at the Athens Olympic Sports
Complex, located in Maroussi, a northern Athens suburb. The
Olympic Indoor Hall is a new building designed by the Spanish
architect Santiago Calatrava. It is part of the beautiful Athens
Olympic Sport Complex.
The
Olympic Stadium, the center of the Olympic Games 2004, is situated
at Maroussi and it is part of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex
(OAKA). The Olympic Stadium can host 72.000 spectators. During
the 2004 Athens Olympic Summer Games, the athletic evens, the
football final and the opening and closing Ceremonies took
place in the Olympic Stadium.
Total
capacity
72.000
spectators
Total
land surface
127.625
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
14.5
km
Completion
date
June
2004
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Olympic
Tennis Center Athens
The
center is situated at Maroussi and is part of the Athens Olympic
Sports Complex (OAKA). It hosted some of the best-known tennis
athletes in the world. The Tennis Center consists of the main
court (8.600 seats), two semi-final courts (4.300 seats) and
13 other courts (200 seats each).
Total
capacity
main
court: 8.600 seats, two semi-final courts: 4.300 seats
Total
land surface
69.000
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
14.5
km
Completion
date
February
2004
Official
opening
2
August 2004
Olympic
Velodrome Athens
The
Olympic Velodrome, at the Athens Olympic Sports Complex (OAKA),
is the venue where the track cycling discipline took place.
It hosted 5.250 spectators. The Velodrome has a wooden track
with a length of 250 meters and 7,5 meters wide, made of afzelia
hard wood. The banking at the two bends is 42°
and 15 ° at the two straights. The renovation of the velodrome
was included in the “Aesthetic Unification of OAKA” project
under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture. Part of it included
its roof, designed by the famous Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.
Total
capacity
5.250
spectators
Total
land surface
53.400
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
14.5
km
Completion
date
30
May 2004
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Panathinaic
Stadium Athens
The
Panathinaic stadium, widely known as “Kallimarmaro”,
is the stadium where the first modern Olympic Games in 1896
were held. Even in ancient years, the area where the Panathinaic
(or Panathenian) Stadium stands today was largely used to host
the Panathenean Games, festival events that were held to honor
the Greek goddess Athena (the Goddess of wisdom, skills and
warfare and protector of the city of Athens in ancient Greece).
It is situated in the center of Athens and if first was reconstructed
in 1895 to become the main stadium to host the 1896 Olympic
Games.
The
renovations that took place under the responsibility of the
General Secretariat of Sports and the Ministry of Culture,
included upgrades and modifications on its infrastructure,
mainly in the restoration of the monument, configuration of
the track and surrounding areas, incorporation of lighting
and establishment of anti-fire systems. During the Olympic
Games the stadium hosted the finish of the marathon and archery.
Total
capacity
archery:
7.500, marathon finish: 34.500
Total
land surface
128.331
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
24
km
Completion
date
31
January 2004
Official
opening
12
August 2004
Peristeri
Olympic Boxing Hall Athens
The
2004 Olympic boxing competition was held at a new Olympic Boxing
Hall in the Municipality of Peristeri in the West Attica region.
This new Indoor Hall has a total capacity of 8.000 seats. The
hall is near National Road and a close to the Olympic Village,
the Dekeleia Training Complex and the center of Athens where
the accommodation of the National Boxing Federation is be located.
Total
capacity
8.000
spectators
Total
land surface
127.800
m²
Vouliagmeni
Olympic Center Athens
Triathlon
(1.500 m swimming, 40 km cycling and 10 km running) was conducted
at the south coast of Attica in Vouliagmeni. Athletes started
the race with the 1.500 m swimming at the famous Oceanida beach.
Next they cycled for 40 km from the beach to the center of
Athens and back. The running track went along Vouliagmenis
Avenue to the Lake of Vouligameni.
Total
capacity
3.600
spectators
Total
land surface
60.900
m²
Distance
to Olympic Village
45
km
Completion
date
30
June 2004 (temporary constructions)
Official
opening
2
August 2004
Olympic Village Athens
The
Olympic Village included a variety of entertainment options
where athletes could enjoy their leisure time. It included:
•
a 5.000 m² sports complex with an Olympic size swimming
pool, a jogging track,
four tennis courts and a state of the art gym.
• an open-air cinema.
• dance clubs with live entertainment.
• games rooms.
• internet cafes.
• daily online village newspaper.
The
Olympic village had two secure zones: the residential zone
and the international zone. The residential zone had newly
constructed apartments, dining facilities, recreational centers,
meeting rooms, religious centers, a polyclinic and a transportation
mall. All residences and offices of the National Olympic Committees
(NOCs) were housed in permanent buildings. The international
zone included the main Olympic Village entrance, shopping centers,
the Olympic museum and an amphitheatre.
Total
land surface
1.240.000
m²
Total
lenght/with
2.090
m/766 m
Indoor
hall
3.000
m²
Outdoor
sporting facilities
30.000
m²
Official
opening
30
July 2004
Plans
for the future
The
Greek government has announced its plans for the Olympic venues.
The venues will be leased, rather than sold and the government
hopes to recoup at least some of the 13,5 billion Euro ($11
billlion) spent on them and 122 million Euro ($100 million)
in annual maintenance costs.
The
main Olympic complex will become a park. The equestrian centre
in Markopoulo would house the capital's second golf course,
a hotel and a heliport apart from the race course that will
also remain. The canoe-kayak race track will be turned into
a water fun park. The Hellenikon sports complex, the Games''
second biggest site, will be turned into a park and the existing
sports facilities, including the indoor arenas, will be used
for cultural purposes, restaurants and cafes.
The
outdoor softball, hockey and baseball courts, which were to
serve only as temporary facilities because of the sports''
fringe appeal in Greece, will not be torn down but turned into
open-air concert arenas, restaurants and additional sports
fields. The Agios Kosmas Olympic sailing centre will become
a 1.170-berth marina which will include a 30-room five-star
hotel.
Almost
none of the stadiums, which cost more than three billion Euro
($3.96 billion), have been used since the Games. Most have
remained shut since September 2004 while ministries and local
authorities squabbled over ownership and the government pondered
their post-Olympic use.