The Athens Olympics: Optimistic Legacies – Post-Olympic Assets and the Struggle for their Realization

Abstract

The 2004 Athens Olympic Games provided the host city with an excellent opportunity to present itself globally as a modern, well designed and well run metropolis with modern facilities and infrastructure symbolic of quality of life and economic investment. The way, however, that the huge, expensive facilities, which were bequeathed to Greek society in general and the host city in particular, were to be used and exploited after the Games, became a splitting headache to the government which experienced harsh criticism from all the political parties. Nevertheless, ambitious plans for the use and exploitation of the post-Olympic legacy of sports facilities and assets as public resources were put into practice with slow but unfaltering steps.

Acknowledgement

Many thanks are due to Professor J. A. Mangan for his editorial support.

Notes

[1] ‘The Closing Ceremony', Kathimerini, 30 Aug. 2004.

[2] Synadinos, O Agonas mias Polis, 57; Lunzenfichter, Athenes … Pekin (1896–2008), Choix Epiques des Villes olympiques, 195–206.

[3] Tziralis et al., ‘Economic Aspects and the Sustainability Impact of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games’.

[4] Synadinos, O Agonas, 194, 200.

[5] Law 2819, 15 Aug. 2000, Official Gazette, vol. 1, no. 84.

[6] Synadinos, ‘He megali simassia tou Olympiakou choriou’, 8.

[7] Synadinos, O Agonas, 200–1.

[8] Ibid., 183–203.

[9] ‘A Survey of Greece', The Economist, 12 Oct. 2002; ‘The Athens Olympics’, The Economist, 18 Aug. 2004.

[10] Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Just Before the Finish Line, 50–5; Synadinos, ‘Post-Olympic Use’, 41.

[11] ‘Olympic Legacy Exploitation', Apogevmatini, 30 Aug. 2004.

[12]‘The Cost of the Olympic Installations’, Vima, 22 Aug. 2004.

[13]‘The Cost of the Games’, Eleftherotypia, 30 Aug. 2004.

[14]‘How much did the Games Cost?’, Vima, 20 Nov. 2004.

[15]‘The Cost of the Games’, Investor's World, 20 Nov. 2004.

[16]‘Report of the Organising Committee of the Olympic Games, Athens, 2004’, Kathimerini, 14 May 2005, 5; ‘Report of the Organising Committee, Athens, 2004’, Investor's World, 14 May 2005, 3.

[17] Tziralis et al., ‘Economic aspects’, 26. According to another estimate, the total cost reached the sum of 13 bn euros. See ‘The Economic Dimension of the Games’, Vima, 19 Aug. 2005; ‘The Games and the Cost’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2006.

[18] Hollway, ‘Enduring Benefits of the Olympic Games for Australia’, 29.

[19]‘The Post-Olympic Utilization of the Olympic Facilities’, Kathimerini, 24 Aug. 2004.

[20]‘Abandoned Olympic Assets’, Ta Nea, 7 Dec. 2004; ‘Olympic Assets in Abeyance’, Macedonia, 8 Dec. 2004.

[21]‘The Day After the Games’, Ethnos, 30 Aug. 2004. In March 2004, the Nea Dimocratia Party assumed the reins of government.

[22]‘Post-Olympic Assets and their Exploitation’, Kathimerini, 31 Aug. 2004.

[23] Ibid., 3 Nov. 2004.

[24]‘Olympic Assets’, Investor's World, 13 Nov. 2004.

[25]‘Consultation on the Olympic Assets’, Express Time, 7 Dec. 2004. A detailed development programme entitled Greece 2005–2007 was presented by the Deputy Minister of Culture, Fani Palli-Petralia. See ‘Post-Olympic Utilization of the Assets’, Ta Nea, 7 Dec. 2004; ‘Post-Olympic Utilization of the Olympic Assets’, Macedonia, 8 Dec. 2004; ‘Olympic Installations and their Exploitation’, Investor's World, 11 Dec. 2004.

[26]‘Locked Olympic Stadiums’, Ta Nea, 7 Dec. 2004; ‘The Olympic Stadiums Remain Locked’, Macedonia, 8 Dec. 2004; ‘Olympic Stadiums in the Dark’, Investor's World, 11 Dec. 2004.

[27] Synadinos, ‘He metaolympiaki chrissi ton egatastasseon’; Ethnos, 29 April 2004, 8.

[28]‘Invitation for Post-Olympic Assessment’, Kathimerini, 31 March 2005.

[29]According to the 2005 bill, the Secretariat General of the Olympic Games was renamed Secretariat General of Olympic Exploitation, which, in collaboration with Hellenic Olympic Properties SA, was to manage the exploitation of the facilities. See Kathimerini, 31 March 2005.

[30] Law 3342, 6 June 2005, Official Gazette, vol. 1, no. 131.

[31]‘A Year After the Games’, Ta Nea, 13 Aug. 2005.

[32]‘The Athens Olympics: A Year After the Games’, Vima, 19 Aug. 2005.

[33]‘The Back Book of the Pasok Party’, Ethnos, 13 Aug. 2005.

[34] Law 3016, 17 May 2002, Official Gazette, vol. 1, no. 110.

[35]‘International Competitions for the Olympic Assets' Utilization’, Express Time, 27 June 2005; Olympic Properties, Press Release, 8 July 2005; 30 Aug. 2005; 15 March 2006.

[36]‘The Olympic Assets are Assigned to Businessmen’, Ta Nea, 12 April 2006.

[37] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 22 Nov. 2006.

[38]‘Two Years After the Games’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2006.

[39]‘The Dowry was Lost: The Debts are Still Here’, Eleftherotypia, 13 Aug. 2006.

[40]‘Post-Olympic Exploitation of the Assets’, Kathimerini, 13 and 30 Aug. 2006. Sidney took two years to open Homebush Bay, which is the biggest recreation park in the world. The government assigned the right of use of the Olympic Stadium's name to a big telecommunication company and invested the money raised in the creation of a company entitled Sydney Olympic Park, which is charged with management and exploitation of the park. The Australians also assigned the use of a large number of facilities to businessmen, who converted the stadiums to shopping and conference centres and built hotels in the allotted land. See Hollway, ‘Enduring Benefits’, 29; Kathimerini, 13 Aug. 2006.

[41] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 15 May 2006; Rigopoulos, ‘The Biggest Theatre in Athens’, Kathimerini, 6 Jan. 2007, 12.

[42] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 23 May 2006; ‘Exploitation of the Galatsi Olympic Centre’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[43]‘The Olympic Village to the Beneficiaries of The Workers' Housing Organization’, Kathimerini, 19 July 2006; ‘The Athens Olympic Village was Given to the Beneficiaries of the Workers' Housing Organisation’, Macedonia, 19 July 2006.

[44] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 28 May 2006; 28 Aug. 2006; 19 Sept. 2006; ‘The Schinias Olympic Rowing Centre will be used as FISA Training Centre’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[45]‘Exploiting the Olympic Legacy’, Kathimerini, 3 Jan. 2007; Olympic Properties, Press Release, 4 Jan. 2007.

[46]‘Utilization of the Olympic Assets’, Olympic Properties, Press Release, 6 July 2007; Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[47] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 11 April 2007; 6 July 2007; ‘Utilization of the Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre’, Ethnos, 12 April 2007; ‘The Agios Kosmas Olympic Facility and its Exploitation’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[48]Ethnos, 12 April 2007; Hemerissia, 12 April 2007.

[49] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 28 Feb. 2007; 22 June 2007; ‘The Assignment of the Use of the Olympic Beach Volley Facilities at Faliro to S. K. Pazaropoulos’, Kathimerini, 26 June 2007. The new Lyric Scene and the National Library, both funded by the Stavros Niarchos Institute, were intended to be constructed in the Faliro area. See ‘The New Lyric Stage and the National Library in the Faliro Area’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[50] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 22 June 2007.

[51]‘The Tae-Kwon-Do Hall will be Converted into an International Convention Centre’, Kathimerini, 5 July 2007.

[52]‘Art Academy will be Established at the Ano Liossia Olympic Centre’, Vima, 13 May 2007; ‘Academy of Art will be Founded in the Ano Liossia Centre’, Kathimerini, 13 May 2007; Olympic Properties, Press Release, 6 July 2007; ‘Art Academy is to be Created at the Olympic Center of Ano Liossia’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[53] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 6 July 2007.

[54]‘The Markopoulo Olympic Centre and its Utilization’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007.

[55] Ibid.; Olympic Properties, Press Release, 9 July 2008.

[56] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 3–4 Sept. 2007.

[57] Ibid., 2 June 2007.

[58] Ibid., 3–4 Sept. 2007.

[59] Ibid., 6 July 2007; ‘The Olympic Assets and their Exploitation’, Investor's World, 12 Aug. 2007; ‘The Olympic Assets and their Exploitation’, Vima, 12 Aug. 2007; ‘The Olympic Assets and their Exploitation’, Kathimerini, 12 Aug. 2007.

[60]‘An Immense Car Park Instead of Green in the Helleniko Beach’, Eleftherotypia, 1 April 2008.

[61] Ibid.

[62] Heraklion Municipality, Press Release, 23 April 2008.

[63] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 21–22 May 2008.

[64] Moore, ‘Ruined Athens Olympic Facilities a Warning to London’, Daily Telegraph, 2 June 2008.

[65] Olympic Properties, Press Release, 16 June 2008.