Panathenaic Stadium

Panathenaic Stadium

The stadium during the 2004 Summer Olympics
Full name	Panathenaic Stadium
Location	Pangrati, Athens, Greece
Coordinates	37°58′06″N 23°44′28″E / 37.96833°N 23.74111°ECoordinates: 37°58′06″N 23°44′28″E / 37.96833°N 23.74111°E
Owner	Hellenic Olympic Committee[1]
Capacity	50,000 (140 AD) 80,000 (1896) 45,000 (current)[2]
Construction
Built	ca. 566 BC 329 BC (rebuilt in marble)
Renovated	1869 (1870 & 1875 Olympics) 1895–1896 (1896 Summer Olympics & 1906 Intercalated Games) 2000–2004 (2004 Summer Olympics)
Architect	Anastasios Metaxas, Ernst Ziller (1890s).
Tenants
Panathenaic Games 1896 Summer Olympics 1906 Intercalated Games AEK Athens 1960s 2004 Olympic archery 2004 Olympic marathon finish line

The Panathenaic Stadium (Greek: Παναθηναϊκό στάδιο), also known as the Kallimármaro (Καλλιμάρμαρο, meaning the "beautifully marbled"), is a multi-purpose stadium used for several events and athletics in Athens. The Stadium hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Reconstructed from the remains of an ancient Greek stadium, the Panathenaic is the only stadium in the world built entirely of marble^[3] (from Mount Penteli) and is one of the oldest in the world.

History

In ancient times, the stadium on this site was used to host the athletic portion of the Panathenaic Games, in honor of the Goddess Athena. During classical times, it had wooden seating. In 329 BCE it was rebuilt in marble by the archon Lycurgus and in 140 CE was enlarged and renovated by Herodes Atticus, giving a seated capacity of 50,000.

The remnants of the ancient structure were excavated and refurbished, with funds provided by Evangelos Zappas, for the revival of the Olympic Games.^[4] Zappas sponsored the Olympic Games that were held there in 1870 and 1875.^[4]

In 1895, the stadium was refurbished a second time for the 1896 Olympics, with completion funding provided by the Greek benefactor George Averoff, whose marble statue now stands at the entrance, based on designs by the architects Anastasios Metaxas and Ernst Ziller.^[5]

In 1906, the Panathenaic Stadium hosted another major international athletic event the 1906 Intercalated Games.

On 4 April 1968, the 1967–68 FIBA European Cup Winner's Cup final was hosted in the stadium where AEK Athens defeated Slavia Prague in front of around 80,000 seated spectators inside the arena and another 40,000 standing spectators. It is believed that since that game the Panathenaic Stadium holds the world record attendance for any basketball game to date.^[6]

In the 2004 Olympic Games, the Panathenaic Stadium hosted the archery competition and the finish of the Marathon.^[7]

Design

The stadium was built long before dimensions for athletics venues were standardized, and its track and layout follow the ancient hairpin-like model.

It could once seat about 80,000 spectators on fifty rows of marble steps and currently holds 45,000 spectators.^[2]

Location

Archery matches in the stadium during the 2004 Olympics.

The stadium is located in the central Athens district of Pangrati, to the east of the National Gardens and the Zappeion Exhibition Hall, to the west of the Pangrati residential district and between the twin pine-covered hills of Ardettos and Agra. Up to the 1950s, the Ilissos River (now covered by, and flowing underneath, Vasileos Konstantinou Avenue) ran in front of the stadium's entrance, and the spring of Kallirrhoe, the sanctuary of Pankrates (a local hero) and the Cynosarges public gymnasium were nearby.

The Fokianos sports facility lies across Vasileos Konstantinou Avenue, and adjacent to it are located the Athens tennis club, the Ethnikos athletics track, the Federation swimming pool, the remnants of the Temple of Olympian Zeus, and Hadrian's Gate. Until the late 19th century and the containment of the Ilissos riverbed, the area was reedy and often flooded, and was called the "Vatrahonisi" (Frog Island).

Celebratory events

In more recent years, the stadium has been often used to honour the homecoming of victorious Greek athletes, most notably the Greek national football team after its victory at the 2004 European Football Championship as well as winners and medallists in the recent Olympic Games.

The stadium also hosted the opening ceremony of the World Athletics Championships in 1997 on a concept by composer Vangelis Papathanasiou and along with the performance of soprano Montserrat Caballé.

The Panathenaic Stadium is the venue where the Olympic flame handover ceremony takes place before every Olympic Games.

Concert venue

On rare occasions, the stadium has also been used as a venue for selected musical and dance performances. Among those include Plácido Domingo, Joaquín Cortés, Depeche Mode, The Cure, The Stranglers, Run–D.M.C., Culture Club, Bonnie Tyler, Joan Jett and Sakis Rouvas.

On September 2008, the stadium hosted the MTV Greece launch party, with guests R.E.M., Kaiser Chiefs, C：Real and Gabriella Cilmi.

On July 1, 2008, recording artist Sakis Rouvas made history, with a sold-out benefit concert, for the environment (coinciding with the first day of the Greek public ban on smoking), with an audience of 50,000–the largest audience ever at the stadium, for a musical event and among the largest concerts of all time, by a Greek artist.

Panorama of the Panathenaic stadium from the entrance.

The Panathenaic stadium during the first day of the 1896 Olympics.

Commemorations

Panathenaic Stadium commemorative coin

The Panathenaic Stadium was selected as the main motif for a high value euro collectors' coin; the €100 Greek The Panathenaic Stadium commemorative coin, minted in 2003 to commemorate the 2004 Olympics. In the obverse of the coin, the stadium is depicted. It is shown on the obverse of all Olympic medals awarded in the 2004 Olympics, and it was also used for the following Summer Olympics in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.

Other stadia of similar design

• The never-completed Deutsches Stadion in Nuremberg, the largest stadium ever planned along similar architectural lines
• Harvard Stadium in Allston, Massachusetts

References

1. "The Hellenic Olympic Committee". www.panathenaicstadium.gr. Hellenic Olympic Committee. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
2. World Stadiums: Stadiums in Greece
3. "Panathenaic Stadium". www.panathenaicstadium.gr. Hellenic Olympic Committee. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
4. David C. Young, The Modern Olympics – A Struggle for Revival, published by The Johns Hopkins University Press in 1996, ISBN 0-8018-5374-5
5. 1896 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 2. pp. 31–49. Retrieved from http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1896/1896.pdf.
6. "All-time attendance records". Euroleague.net. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
7. 2004 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 2. pp. 237, 242, 244. Retrieved from http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/2004/or2004b.pdf.