Olympic Stadium (Olympiastadion), Berlin, Germany

Related person

Eric Haddenham (was created by)

Date

1934-1936

Description

In 1930, the International Olympic Committee invited Berlin to compete for the honor to hold the Olympic Summer Games of 1936. The National Stadium (Deutsches Stadion), built in 1912-1913, occupied the site until 1934. This stadium was also known as the "Grunewaldstadion" and it could not accommodate the Olympic Games. The plans for re-modelling the stadium were suggested by German architect, Werner March. His proposal was dropped due to the high costs involved in implementing it. When Adolf Hitler was made Chancellor in 1933, the discussion resumed. The Nazi regime understood that the Olympic Games presented a valuable opportunity for propaganda. The government funded the rebuilding of the National Stadium and the Sportforum. At first, Werner and Walter March were named chief architects. Later, Hitler decided that the construction should be supervised by the Imperial Ministry of the Interior, through which he employed his chief architect, Albert Speer. Following the aftermath of WWII, the Olympiastadion had experienced structural damage. In 1998, the Berlin Senate decided to renovate and expand it into a multifunctional sports arena. The reconstruction of the building was completed in 2006 for the FIFA World Cup. Information from: http://www.olympiastadion-berlin.de This image was taken in 2001 by John P. Schooley, FAIA, during the 'Berlin: Building the New City' tour. This tour was planned for architects and planners so that they could see first-hand how this once-divided city emerged from the Cold War to become a leading commercial and cultural center in Europe. Submitted by John P. Schooley, FAIA.

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