Helsinki Olympic Stadium

The Helsinki Olympic Stadium (Finnish: Helsingin Olympiastadion; Swedish: Helsingfors Olympiastadion), located in the Töölö district about 2.3 kilometres (1.4 mi) from the centre of the Finnish capital Helsinki, is the largest stadium in the country, nowadays mainly used for hosting sports events and big concerts. The stadium is best known for being the centre of activities in the 1952 Summer Olympics. During those games, it hosted athletics, equestrian show jumping, and the football finals.

Helsinki Olympic Stadium
Helsingin olympiastadion
Helsingfors Olympiastadion
"Stadikka"
LocationHelsinki, Finland
Coordinates60°11′13″N 024°55′38″E
OwnerStadion-säätiö
Capacity36,000
70,000 (as olympic mode)
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Broke ground12 February 1934
Opened12 June 1938
Renovated1939, 1947–1952, 1953–1956, 1961, 1971, 1991–1994, 1997–1998, 2004–2005, 2010–2011, 2016–2020
ArchitectYrjö Lindegren and Toivo Jäntti
Tenants
Finland national football team

The stadium was also the venue for the first Bandy World Championship in 1957, the first World Athletics Championships in 1983 as well as for the 2005 World Championships in Athletics. It hosted the European Athletics Championships in 1971, 1994 and 2012. It is also the home stadium of the Finland national football team.

The stadium reopened in August 2020 after 4 years of renovation.[1]

History

Helsinki Olympic Stadium in 1938 soon after its completion. The stadium, first built for the 1940 Olympics, had to wait until 1952 for its intended use as an arena for the Olympic games as the war led to the cancellation of the event.

The Olympic Stadium was designed in functionalistic style by the architects Yrjö Lindegren and Toivo Jäntti. Construction of the Olympic Stadium began in 1934 and it was completed in 1938, with the intent to host the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were moved from Tokyo to Helsinki before being cancelled due to World War II. It hosted the 1952 Summer Olympics over a decade later instead. The stadium was also to be the main venue for the cancelled 1943 Workers' Summer Olympiad.

It was the venue for the first ever Bandy World Championship in 1957.

The stadium was completely modernized in 1990–1994 and also renovated just before the 2005 World Championships in Athletics.

In 2006 an American TV series, The Amazing Race 10, had one of its episodes ending at The Olympic Stadium Tower. As a task, teams had to do a face-first rappel (known as the Angel Dive) down the Helsinki Olympic Tower.

Since March 2007, a Eurasian eagle-owl has been spotted living in and around the stadium. On June 6, 2007, during a Euro 2008 qualifying match, the owl delayed play by ten minutes after perching on a goalpost. The owl was later christened Bubi and was named as Helsinki's Resident of the Year.

The 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Olympic Games hosted in the Helsinki Olympic Stadium was the main motif for one of the first Finnish euro silver commemorative coins, the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Olympic Games commemorative coin, minted in 2002. On the reverse, a view of the Helsinki Olympic Stadium can be seen. On the right, the 500 markka commemorative coin minted in 1952 celebrating the occasion is depicted.

Features

The tower of the Helsinki Olympic Stadium, a distinct landmark with a height of 72.71 metres (238.5 ft).

The stadium's spectator capacity was at its maximum during the 1952 Summer Olympics with over 70,000 spectator places. Nowadays the stadium has 40,600 spectator places. During concerts, depending on the size of the stage, the capacity is 45,000–50,000.

The tower of the stadium, a distinct landmark with a height of 72.71 metres (238.5 ft), a measurement of the length of the gold-medal win by Matti Järvinen in javelin throw of 1932 Summer Olympics, is open for visitors and offers impressive views over Helsinki. It is possible to see into the adjacent Telia 5G -areena.

A Youth Hostel is located within the Stadium complex.

Recent

Stadium renovation close to finish line in April 2020

Major renovation work at the stadium started in the spring of 2016. During renovation all the spectator stands were covered with canopies and the field area and the tracks were renewed. The stadium now also offers extended restaurant areas and more indoor sport venues.[2] The renovation was completed and the stadium was open to the public in September 2020.

The projected cost of the renovation was expected to consume €197 million in 2016, €261 million in 2019 and ended up at a price of €337 million, which is €140 million (or 70 percent) more than the original projected cost. The Finnish state and the City of Helsinki are the funders of the renovation.[1][3]

Events

Sport events

Concerts

Date Artist(s) Supporting act(s) Tour
2 September 1970The Rolling StonesJunior Wells All Stars
Buddy Guy
The Rolling Stones European Tour 1970
4 August 1992Dire StraitsWas (Not Was)On Every Street Tour
6 June 1995The Rolling StonesRobert CrayVoodoo Lounge Tour
19 July 1996Bon JoviLemonator
Babylon Zoo
These Days Tour
9 August 1996Tina TurnerWildest Dreams Tour
9 August 1997U2AudiowebPopMart Tour
24 August 1997Michael JacksonHIStory World Tour
26 August 1997
25 June 1998Elton John
5 August 1998The Rolling StonesBridges to Babylon Tour
5 August 1999Mestarit
26 June 2001AC/DCGeorge Thorogood & The DestroyersStiff Upper Lip World Tour
16 June 2003Bruce SpringsteenThe Rising Tour
17 June 2003
16 July 2003The Rolling StonesZZ Top
The Hellacopters
Licks Tour
28 May 2004MetallicaSlipknot
Lostprophets
Madly in Anger with the World Tour
17 June 2004Paul McCartney2004 Summer Tour
11 June 2007GenesisTurn It On Again: The Tour
15 July 2007MetallicaHIM
Diablo
Sick of the Studio '07
1 August 2007The Rolling StonesToots & The MaytalsA Bigger Bang Tour
16 June 2008Bon JoviMoonMadnessLost Highway Tour
11 July 2008Bruce SpringsteenMagic Tour
18 July 2008Iron MaidenAvenged Sevenfold
Lauren Harris
Somewhere Back in Time World Tour
17 June 2009AC/DCThe Answer
Blake
Black Ice World Tour
20 August 2010U2RazorlightU2 360° Tour
21 August 2010
17 June 2011Bon JoviBlock Buster
The Breakers
Bon Jovi Live
8 July 2011Iron MaidenAlice CooperThe Final Frontier World Tour
31 July 2012Bruce SpringsteenWrecking Ball World Tour
12 August 2012MadonnaMartin SolveigThe MDNA Tour
20 July 2013Iron MaidenAmorphis
Sabaton
Ghost
Maiden England World Tour
27 July 2013MuseMew
French Films
The 2nd Law World Tour
22 August 2014CheekJVG
22 August 2014
27 June 2015One DirectionIsac Elliot
McBusted
On the Road Again Tour
16 August 2015Jari Sillanpää

References

  1. "Olympiastadionin korjauksen hintalappu kallistumassa jälleen – vuosia remonttivasaran alla olleen stadioinin määrä avautua elokuussa". mtvuutiset.fi. 9 November 2019. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  2. Modernisation and renewal of the Helsinki Olympic Stadium Archived 24 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 20 December 2014
  3. StadiumDB.com: Helsinki: Olympiastadion is great but the price isn’t, 23.01.2021
  4. "UEFA". Twitter. Retrieved 27 March 2020. 🗓 BREAKING: The 2022 UEFA #SuperCup final will be held in Helsinki, Finland, at the Olympic Stadium.⁣

Media related to Helsingin olympiastadion at Wikimedia Commons

Preceded by
Empire Stadium
London
Summer Olympics
Main venue (Olympic Stadium)

1952
Succeeded by
Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne
Preceded by
Empire Stadium
London
Summer Olympics
Athletic competitions
Main venue

1952
Succeeded by
Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne
Preceded by
Empire Stadium
London
Summer Olympics
Men's football
Final venue

1952
Succeeded by
Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne
Preceded by
Ewood Park
Blackburn
UEFA Women's Euro
Final venue

2009
Succeeded by
Friends Arena
Solna
Preceded by
Windsor Park
Belfast
UEFA Super Cup
Match venue

2022
Succeeded by
Ak Bars Arena
Kazan
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