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In Athens, many of the 2004 stadia now stand abandoned and overgrown. Beijing’s hugely expensive 2008 “Bird’s Nest” may have become a tourist attraction, but has been rarely used for anything else.
Even London’s “cheap” 2012 stadium is having a troubled and expensive rebirth as a football arena.
So what lessons has Tokyo taken away from all this? Huge and expensive state-of-the-art stadiums are a bad idea? Apparently not.
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Read full article: BBC News – Tokyo Olympic stadium: Sports cathedral or white elephant?
A very interesting article about the urban redevelopment in Tokyo ahead of the 2020 Olympics:
With less than six years remaining until the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, which will start July 24 that year, both the public and private sectors have launched urban redevelopment projects in the capital.
Read full article: The Japan News – Resculpting the face of Tokyo ahead of 2020 Games
Inside the Games reports that the 2020 sailing venue could be moved due to its location in the approach zone of one of Haneda Airport’s runways.
Read full article: Inside The Games – Tokyo 2020 reviewing “several options” for alternate sailing venue
IOC weighs Tokyo 2020 Olympic venue changes Read the full article on USA Today
The Japan Sport Council has released a basic design proposal for the new National Stadium in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, which will serve as the main stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
The total floor area is about 211,000 square meters, reflecting a reduction of more than 20 percent from the initial design proposal in 2012. The new proposal, released Wednesday, also gives consideration to the protection of the surrounding environment and landscape.
Under the initial proposal, construction was set to cost as much as about ¥300 billion, more than double the original estimate. The project was met with growing criticism for being too large, so parts of the stadium, including aisles, were scaled down and the cost was reduced to about ¥162.5 billion. The new stadium is scheduled to be completed in March 2019.
Source: Japan Sport (PDF)
31 May. 2014 – TOKYO 2020 Says “Sayonara” to the National Stadium, Looks Forward to the New Olympic Stadium
TOKYO 2020 joined by members of Japan’s sporting community and around 40,000 sport fans to say “Sayonara” to the National Stadium during a farewell ceremony to commemorate this focal point of Japanese sport on the day of its official closure for reconstruction.
TOKYO 2020 President Yoshiro Mori was among those paying their last respects to the stadium. He said: “Over the past half-century, the National Stadium has truly been a sanctum of Japanese sport. It has hosted numerous unforgettable matches and competitions, and has a special place in the hearts of people all over Japan. I have been actively involved in sport for many, many years, and as the curtain closes on this historic venue, I find myself recalling several of the memorable sporting occasions that have graced the stadium.
Source / Read more: TOKYO2020
The 1964 Olympic Stadium held its final sporting event Sunday before it’s to be demolished in July, making way for a larger stadium for the 2019 Rugby World Cup and 2020 Olympics.
Japan beat Hong Kong 49-8 to qualify for its eighth straight Rugby World Cup in the final event in Tokyo’s 54,000-seat stadium that opened in 1958.
Source / Read more: NBC Sports