2012 Summer Olympics Thread: London July 27 - August 12

[mronegative]

Fascinating Photos of Abandoned Olympic Sites Around the World

by Claire Cottrell. Posted on 3:30 pm Monday Aug 13, 2012
The Storefront for Art & Architecture, our favorite Little Italy-adjacent nonprofit organization, has organized a photo exhibition exploring the post-Olympic city. Answering the question, what happens to a city after the Olympics are gone, the show features The Olympic City project, an ongoing collaboration between photographer Jon Pack and indie filmmaker Gary Hustwit of Helvetica design docu fame.


As the show’s catalog states, “some former Olympic sites are retrofitted and used in ways that belie their grand beginnings; turned into prisons, housing, malls, gyms, churches. Others sit unused for decades and become tragic time capsules.” We’re as horrified as we are fascinated by the fact that billions of dollars are spent every two years only to see such a sad — sometimes bizarre — fate. From abandoned Olympic villages to crumbling public art commissions, click through to check out the very best of Olympic ruin porn. Then let us know in the comments what you think about such a temporary extravagance. Should cities re-think the Olympics? Will London’s flashy stadiums look like this one day?


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2008 Beach Volleyball Stadium — Beijing, China







Image credit: David Gray via The Atlantic

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2008 Kayaking Venue — Beijing, China







Image credit: David Gray via The Atlantic

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2004 Olympic Sports Complex — Athens, Greece







Image credit: Jamie McGregor Smith via It’s Nice That

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2004 Helliniko Olympic Softball Stadium — Athens, Greece







Image credit: Jamie McGregor Smith via It’s Nice That

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1984 Luge and Bobsleigh Track — Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina







Image credit: Karen Barlow via cloudlessness

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1984 Olympic Ski Jump Venue — Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina







Image credit: Karen Barlow via cloudlessness

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1984 Winter Olympics Podium — Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina




Image credit: Jon Pack via <em>The Atlantic

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1972 Olympic Stadium Train Station — Munich, Germany







Image credit: Twin City Photos

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1968 “Route of Friendship” Olympic Public Art Project — Mexico City, Mexico







Image credit: Jon Pack and Gary Hustwit via The Olympic City Kickstarter

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1952 Olympics Swimming Stadium — Lake Ahvenisto, Finland







Image credit: Höök

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1936 Olympic Village — Elstal, Germany







Image credit: Abandoned Berlin

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1932 Grand Olympic Auditorium — Los Angeles, California

 

[dmxfury]

Fascinating stuff

 

[scotthallwithapick]

Ya'll keep slipping on Brazil man. They're not a 3rd world country like that. They're an up and coming economic powerhouse.


Those opening ceremonies are going to CLOWN though 

Yup. Everyone thinks if they aren't a powerhouse they must be poor

Just wait

 

[ai39theanswer]

 

[crcballer55]

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1932 Grand Olympic Auditorium — Los Angeles, California

 

[Nawzlew]

1932 Grand Olympic Auditorium — Los Angeles, California

I think it was used last year as the church in 21 Jump Street.

 

[fadeballer]

She is pretty. She has nice eyes.
 

 

[fadeballer]

Next Olympic will be in Brazil right? That's what i heard.