Today's stadium of the world is the Olimpiysky Stadium in Kiev, which is to host the Uefa European Championships final in 2012. The stadium was originally build in 1923 as the Red Stadium to host the second All-Ukrainian Olympic games. During World War II the stadium was destroyed by the Nazis, after the war the stadium was rebuild as the Stalin Respublikanskiy Stadium. After Stalin's death the Stadium became first known as the Khrushchev Respublikanskiy Stadium and then as the Respublikanskiy Stadium. In 1980 the Stadium hosted the soccer games of the Moscow Summer Olympics, and from then on the Stadium became known as the Kiev Olympic Stadium, which title it officially careers since 1996 when the stadium was named the Olimpiysky Stadium. During 1997-99 reconstructions the stadium was made fit to guarantee FIFA standards, and its capacity was limited to 83,000. The local club Dinamo Kiev plays some of its home games in the Olimpiysky, but due to its size Dinamo only plays games against main rivals or Champions League matches in the Olimpiysky. Most of Dinamo's games are played at the Lobanovsky Dinamo Stadium, which with 16,900 seats is significantly smaller and a much better venue for the Ukrainian Premier League.
The Stadium is also home to the Ukrainian national team, which is hoping to benefit from hosting the 2012 European Championships. The Olimpiysky will undergo a major renovation for the games. It has been in doubt if the stadium could be used for the event, because a construction of a mall close to the stadium was a major security concern. Uefa was concerned that due of a lack of space at the stadium exits, no games could be held at the stadium. But the Ukrainian FA together with the Ukrainian government have since stepped in to solve the problem by ordering the destruction of the construction side. There are plans to refurbish the stadium for the tournament, a roof is expected to be built and the capacity decreased to 83,300.
No comments:
Post a Comment