Architecture + Design

The Best Olympic Architecture

Like the Games themselves, the most memorable buildings created for the international sporting stage celebrate human achievement

By Josephine Minutillo

July 18, 2016

Serving not only as stages for athletic dominance, but sometimes—Berlin 1936, Moscow 1980, for example—as backdrops to political ferment, Olympic buildings, parks, and monuments carry the weight of more than just the bricks and mortar (and steel and glass and high-tech plastic) that compose them. AD’s survey of historic Olympic venues spans 17 Games over nine decades, from Los Angeles’ first Summer Olympics in 1932 to London’s third hosting gig in 2012.

2015 Los Angeles Times

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Olympic Stadium, Athens, 2004

The birthplace of the Olympics, Athens had not hosted a modern Games for more than a century (since 1896) when it finally got another shot in 2004. Plagued by rumors that the venues would not be completed in time, the Games ultimately went off without a hitch. The Greek Ministry of Culture called on Santiago Calatrava to transform an existing 75,000-seat open-air stadium for the opening and closing ceremonies. The Spanish architect left his signature on the 1982 structure with the addition of a striking roof composed of twin tubular steel arches that span 997 feet.
2009 Margarethe Wichert

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Montjuïc Communications Tower, Barcelona, 1992

Few cities have taken as full advantage of their moment in the Olympic spotlight as Barcelona did in 1992. The Catalan capital reinvented itself for the occasion, overhauling its infrastructure and adding a spectacular array of new architecture along the waterfront and on Montjuïc, the imposing hill overlooking the harbor that hosted the major sports venues for the Games. Stars such as Frank Gehry, Norman Foster, and Arata Isozaki were brought in, while the work of then-little-known local architects like Enric Miralles was introduced on the world stage. Santiago Calatrava designed the 446-foot-high steel Communications Tower to resemble an athlete carrying the Olympic torch.

2007 Getty Images

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Ski Jump Towers at Canada Olympic Park, Calgary, 1988

It was the “Battle of the Brians”—Orser and Boitano—on the ice, but the slopes at the 1988 Winter Games in Calgary also had their stars. The charismatic Alberto Tomba led the slalom, while “Flying Finn” Matti Nykänen won three gold medals on the ski jumps at Olympic Park, which has become a popular ski resort. The park features seven ski jumps and the 295-foot-tall ski jump tower, now an iconic part of the region’s skyline.
2005 AFP

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Olympic Stadium and Tower, Helsinki, 1952

Though Finland typically dominates winter sports, it played host to the Summer Olympics in 1952. The Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, with its striking 238-foot-tall tower, was actually designed decades earlier by architects Yrjö Lindegren and Toivo Jäntti and completed in 1938. A huge structure, it accommodated 70,000 spectators during opening ceremonies.

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Aquatics Centre, London, 2012

Inspired by the fluid geometry of water in motion, Zaha Hadid’s design for the Aquatics Centre for the 2012 London Olympics features a 525-foot-long undulating roof. The temporary seating stands on either side of the sinuous structure have now been removed and replaced by permanent floor-to-ceiling glazing running the length of the building. Prior to her passing, Hadid was recruited to create an even larger Olympic venue: the 80,000-seat New National Stadium of Japan that will host the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
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Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, 1980

Much of the world did not get to experience Russia’s first stint hosting the Olympics. The 1980 Summer Games in Moscow are perhaps best remembered for the U.S.-led boycott that reduced the number of participating nations to 80, the lowest since 1956. Still, over 5,000 athletes competed, many within Luzhniki Stadium, the largest sports complex in the country. Built in 1956 when it was known as the Central Lenin Stadium, the nearly 80,000-capacity arena is set to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

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Old Wembley Stadium, London, 1948

London was one of the first cities to host a modern Olympics back in 1908. Forty years later it hosted again, holding events in and around Wembley Stadium. Designed as both proud monument to, and functional arena for, the British Empire Exhibition of 1924, the stadium featured twin white concrete towers. Later known as the “Church of Football” to English soccer fans, the stadium and its famous towers were reduced to rubble in 2003 to make way for a new venue.
Bongarts

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Olympic Stadium, Sydney, 2000

Often described as the best in modern Olympic history, the Sydney 2000 Games also featured the largest-capacity Olympic stadium ever built. Designed by Populous—architects of Fisht Olympic Stadium for the current Winter Games in Sochi—ANZ Stadium accommodated 118,000 spectators during the events. It now operates as a more sustainable venue of 85,000 seats. (ANZ was the first stadium of this scale specifically designed to be reconfigured after the Games.)

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Olympic Park, Munich, 1972

German architect/engineer Frei Otto came to prominence by creating temporary tent structures, including one for the West German Pavilion at the Montreal World Exposition of 1967. The largest and most enduring, designed together with Günter Behnisch, was made for the 1972 Munich Games. The sweeping tensile structure covers Olympic Park and has become an attraction in itself. While the site continues to host sporting events and concerts, it also offers guided roof climbs for adventurous visitors.
2011 AFP

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Olympic Stadium, Berlin, 1936

These were the Olympic Games of Adolf Hitler. But also of Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals. Designed by Werner March, the Berlin Olympic Stadium embodies the severe austerity of Nazi-era architecture, setting the scene for Leni Riefenstahl’s documentary Olympia. One of the few large structures in the city to survive the war, it has continued to host sporting events, most notably the dramatic final match of the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

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Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, 1932 and 1984

During the financial crisis of the late 1970s, Los Angeles used existing buildings in its winning bid to host the 1984 Summer Olympics, most notably the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Designed by father-and-son architectural team John and Donald Parkinson and built in 1923, the Coliseum is the only facility in the world to play host to two Olympiads (X and XXIII), two Super Bowls (I and VII), and one World Series (1959).
2009 AFP

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Olympic Stadium (Estadio Olímpico Universitario), Mexico City, 1968

Mexico City was considered a controversial choice to host the 1968 Olympic Games because of the city's high altitude, but the thin air proved an advantage in some events, such as short-distance running, jumping, and throwing, all of which were held in the Estadio Olímpico Universitario. Architects Augusto Pérez Palacios, Raúl Salinas, and Jorge Bravo adopted a system of construction based on stepped terraces made from local volcanic stone, which also clads the exterior of the 1952 building. A mural by Diego Rivera adorns the stadium’s side.

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Olympic Stadium, Montreal, 1976

Designed by French architect Roger Taillibert, Montreal’s Olympic Stadium was besieged with problems during construction, including cost overruns and structural issues. It has a 556-foot-tall slanted tower that supports a retractable roof, neither of which was completed in time for the 1976 Games, where Nadia Comăneci famously scored the first perfect 10 in women’s gymnastics and Bruce Jenner took home the gold in the decathlon.
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Olympic Stadium and Park, Seoul, 1988

Much as the 1964 Tokyo Olympics helped usher in a new postwar era for Japan, the 1988 Seoul Games—the second Games held in Asia—did the same for a newly industrialized South Korea. They featured big performances by Greg Louganis and Janet Evans, but also big controversy, as Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson became the first world-famous athlete to be disqualified for testing positive for steroids. The centerpiece of the Jamsil Sports Complex, the dynamically curved Seoul Olympic Stadium was designed by Japanese-trained architect Kim Swoo Geun to evoke the profile of a Joseon Dynasty porcelain vase.

¬© Goujon / Andia.fr

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Olympic Arch, Turin, 2006

Hosting the Winter Olympics in 2006 offered Turin, an Italian city of one million, an opportunity to rethink and revitalize major sections of its metropolitan area. One of the most enduring visual legacies of that effort is the 226-foot-tall red arch designed by Hugh Dutton over a pedestrian bridge connecting the Olympic Village to adjacent competition areas.
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Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Tokyo, 1964

Pritzker Prize winner Kenzo Tange designed spectacular twin stadia for the 1964 Games in Tokyo—the first Games held in Asia. The basketball arena and larger elliptical swimming center have sweeping catenary steel roofs hung from concrete ring beams that also support upper seating tiers. In Tokyo’s winning bid for the 2020 Games, the highly adaptable design will serve as the handball venue.

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Beijing National Stadium, Beijing, 2008

Herzog & de Meuron, along with Ai Weiwei, designed Beijing's iconic "bird's nest" stadium for the 2008 Olympics. The stadium will be used again when the city hosts the 2022 Winter Olympics.