Olympic Stadium
Aerial view of the Olympic Stadium in April 2012
Location	Olympic Park Stratford London England
Coordinates	51°32′19″N 0°00′59″W / 51.53861°N 0.01639°W / 51.53861; -0.01639Coordinates: 51°32′19″N 0°00′59″W / 51.53861°N 0.01639°W / 51.53861; -0.01639
Broke ground	2007
Built	2008–2011
Opened	2011
Operator	Olympic Delivery Authority
Surface	Track and field (grass)
Construction cost	£486 million[1]
Architect	Populous (formerly HOK Sport)
Structural engineer	Buro Happold
Services engineer	Buro Happold
Main contractors	Sir Robert McAlpine
Capacity	80,000[2]
Tenants
2012 Summer Olympics 2012 Summer Paralympics 2013 London Athletics Grand Prix 2015 Rugby World Cup 2017 IPC Athletics World Championships 2017 IAAF World Championships in Athletics West Ham United (2016–)

The Olympic Stadium is a stadium located at Olympic Park in Stratford, London, England. It is located at Marshgate Lane in London's Stratford district in the Lower Lea Valley. It was constructed primarily to serve as the host stadium for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, where it hosted the track and field events, along with its opening and closing ceremonies. The stadium is located 6.5 miles (10.5 km) from Central London, but six minutes away from the London St. Pancras rail station via Stratford International Highspeed rail services.

Bids surrounding potential use of the stadium following the Games included those by the association football clubs Tottenham Hotspur F.C. (alongside Anschutz Entertainment Group) and West Ham United, several rugby clubs, and several cricket clubs (who saw the benefits of its high capacity and shape). West Ham was chosen by the London Legacy Development Corporation as the preferred tenant for the stadium in December 2012, with work on the stadium set to begin in late-2013. In the meantime, Olympic Stadium will host various concerts beginning in July 2013, the London Grand Prix of the IAAF Diamond League, and will also host both the 2017 IAAF World Championships in Athletics and the 2017 IPC Athletics World Championships.

Land preparation for Olympic Stadium began in mid-2007, with the official construction start date on 22 May 2008, although piling works for the foundation unofficially began four weeks ahead of that date. The stadium held its first public event in March 2012, serving as the finish line for a celebrity running event organized by the National Lottery.^[3] The stadium has a capacity of 80,000, making it the third-largest stadium in England behind Wembley Stadium and Twickenham Stadium.

Development [edit]

On 13 October 2009, LOCOG confirmed that it had selected the Team Stadium consortium (consisting of Sir Robert McAlpine; HOK Sport + Venue + Event, now known as Populous; and Buro Happold) to start negotiations with, in order to fulfil the eventual design and build contract of the new Olympic Stadium.^[4]

The ODA received international and national interest to prequalify for the design and construction tender but Team Stadium was the only consortium to meet all prequalification criteria. The consortium was also the team who delivered the locally acclaimed new Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal F.C. team stadium members have extensive experience in the design and build of sports venues, including the Olympic Stadium for the 2000 Sydney Games.

On 11 October 2011, Britain's Olympics minister Hugh Robertson confirmed the collapse of the Olympic Park Legacy Company's (ORTO) agreement with West Ham United to take over the stadium after the games. The OPLC announced that negotiations with West Ham, unveiled as the preferred stadium bidder in February 2011, had ended because of growing concerns over delays caused by the ongoing legal dispute with rival club Tottenham Hotspur. West Ham had not signed any contracts, allowing the OPLC to abandon talks with the club. The stadium, which cost an estimated £486 million, will now remain in public ownership and leased out to an anchor tenant following a new tender process.^[5]

Olympic Stadium hosted its first public event on 31 March 2012, serving as the finish line for the National Lottery Olympic Park Run. Five thousand participants (including celebrities, British athletes, and members of the public who won a drawing organized by the National Lottery) partook in a five mile run around Olympic Park, entering Olympic Stadium to the theme from Chariots of Fire to run the final 300m on its track.^[3]

Structures and facilities [edit]

Exploded view of the stadium's layers

The stadium design was launched on 7 November 2007. The architect, Populous, is an architectural firm specialising in the design of sports facilities and convention centres, as well as planning of major special events.^[6] Construction took four years from 2007 to 2011.

The stadium's track and field arena is excavated out of the soft clay found on the site, around which is permanent seating for 25,000, built using concrete "rakers". The natural slope of the land is incorporated into the design, with warm-up and changing areas dug into a semi-basement position at the lower end. Spectators enter the stadium via a podium level, which is level with the top of the permanent seating bowl. A demountable lightweight steel and pre-cast concrete upper tier is built up from this "bowl" to accommodate a further 55,000 spectators.^[7]

The Olympic Stadium interior

The stadium is made up of different tiers; during the games the stadium was able to hold 80,000 spectators. The base tier, which will be permanent and allow for 25,000 seats, is a sunken elliptical bowl that is made up of low-carbon-dioxide concrete; this contains 40 percent less embodied carbon than conventional concrete.^[8] The foundation of the base level is 5,000 piles reaching up to 20 metres deep. From there, there is a mixture of driven cast in situ piles, continuous flight auger piles, and vibro concrete columns. The second tier, which holds 55,000 seats, is 315 metres long, 256 metres wide, and 60 metres high.^[9] The stadium contains just under a quarter of the steel as the Olympic Stadium in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics, approximately 10,700 tons. In addition to the minimal use of steel, which makes it 75 percent lighter, the stadium also uses high-yield large diameter pipes which were surplus on completion of North Sea Gas pipeline projects, recycled granite, and many of the building products were transported using trains and barges rather than by lorry.^[10]

Exterior wrap [edit]

The Olympic Stadium during the 2012 Summer Olympics

Plastic, or an environmentally sustainable fabric such as hemp, was initially designed to be wrapped around the stadium exterior and imprinted with a mural-type design. The wrap would have been 20 metres (66 feet) high and would have encircled the 900-metre (1,000-yard) circumference of the stadium. Both hemp and the continuous wrapping were ruled out. The final design for the wrap consists of 2.5 m-wide fabric panels, twisted at 90-degree angles to allow entry to the stadium at the bottom of the structure, and held in place with tensioned cables.^[11] It has been reported in The Guardian that a member of the stadium-design team, Rod Sheard, would have preferred the wrap to take the form of a continuous video screen, although no costing for this was ever given.^[12] On 4 August 2011, it was announced that Dow Chemical Company would fund the wrap for the stadium, in return for being able to advertise on the wrap until 26 June 2012, at which point all advertising and logos would be removed as per Olympic requirements. The wrap is made from polyester and polyethylene, is printed using UV curable inks and encircles the stadium. Installation of the wrap began on 14 April 2012.^[13]

Roof [edit]

Architectural model of a section of the stadium showing how the roof is suspended from the truss ring.

To allow for fast on-site assembly, compression truss and roof column connections were bolted; this will also enable easy disassembling of the roof structure after the closing ceremonies.^[14] The cable-supported roof structure covers approximately two thirds of the stadium's seating.^[15] A six-month study conducted by Olympic organisers found that while no roof at all could invalidate any potential world records set at the stadium, a partial roof reduced the chance of winds that can invalidate sprint and jump records from fifty percent to five percent.^{[citation needed]} The roof is made from a phthalate-free polyvinyl chloride (PVC) fabric to keep costs down.

Serge Ferrari, a French manufacturer of tarpaulins was selected to supply PVC fabrics which are reused and recycled after the use and demodulation of the temporary venues. The material will potentially be reused in football stadiums in Brazil for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Others will be recycled with the PVC Recycling process Vinyloop.

Dan Epstein Head of Sustainable Development at Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) says

As we have done in the past with materials such as timber and concrete, we want to use the opportunity of hosting the London 2012 Games to work with industry to set new standards. In this case this may help move the industry towards more sustainable manufacture, use and disposal of PVC fabrics. ^[16]

Stadium island [edit]

The Olympic Stadium site under construction in October 2009

The stadium site is on former industrial land between the River Lea (which rejoins the Navigation below Old Ford Lock), the City Mill River, and the Old Pudding Mill River; parts of the Bow Back Rivers. Another branch of this system, St Thomas' Creek, 200 metres (660 feet) to the south, completes an "island" surrounded by water. Two hundred metres to the east is the Waterworks River; with the London Aquatics Centre on its eastern bank. This "island" site for the stadium lies at the southern end of the Olympic Park. The existing waterways were modified to surround the stadium, and access is via several footbridges positioned around the building's perimeter. The stadium island is at the most western point of Newham. Bow, Tower Hamlets is directly located west of the stadium.

The stadium has been built on the site of the northern corner of Marshgate Lane and Knobs Hill Road, Stratford, London E15. The Knobs Hill Road trading estate was one of the industrial areas demolished to make way for the Olympic Park. The stadium occupies the northern part of the former estate. Knobs Hill Road was probably named to commemorate Knobs Hill Cottage, Marshgate Lane, Stratford, which stood from the 19th century until the inter war period (1919–1939). According to the 1886 Stratford Trade Directory, it belonged to Mr George Stroud. His occupation was listed as "pig dealer". The cottage is named on the contemporary Essex, Middlesex and London 1:2500 and one inch Ordnance Survey maps. The cottage appears to be associated with the Knobs Hill flour mill, which stood at the northern end of the Pudding Mill River. The first mill on the site was Nobshill Windmill, in the Manor of West Ham. The cottage site appears to be within the stadium boundary, the mills stood slightly to the northeast.

Stadium interior [edit]

Lighting paddle which was connected to every seat (left) and what it can create (right).

The stadium is equipped with a nine lane Mondo 400 metres athletics track. It also has a 60 metre indoor sprint track and will have space for lectures, offices, commercial, conference and hospitality. It is also envisaged by the London Legacy Development corporation that the stadium will host tours, concerts and art and culture events.^[17]

During the Games, the Stadium's grandstands contained a lighting system developed by Tait Technologies that allowed them to function as a giant video screen. Individual "paddles" containing nine LED pixels each were installed between each seat of the stadium, which were controlled via a central system to display video content wrapped around the stadium. The system was primarily intended for use during the ceremonies of the Olympics and Paralympics - over 70 minutes of animated content were used during the Olympics' opening ceremony.^[18]

Response [edit]

The stadium design received a mixed response from the media, with reviews ranging from "magnificent" to a "bowl of blancmange".^[19] The design was promoted as example of "sustainable development", but some architecture critics have questioned both its aesthetic value and suitability as a national icon – especially when compared to Beijing National Stadium. For example, Ellis Woodman, Building Designs architecture critic, said of the design: "The principle of it being dismountable is most welcome... it demonstrates an obvious interest in establishing an economy of means and as such is the antithesis of the 2008 Olympic stadium in Beijing. But while that's an achievement, it's not an architectural achievement. In design terms what we're looking at is pretty underwhelming." He went on to criticise the procurement and design processes – stating of the latter that it should have been subject to an architectural competition.^[20] This view was echoed by Tom Dyckhoff, The Times's architecture critic, who described the design as "tragically underwhelming" and commented that the "architecture of the 2008 and 2012 Olympics will, in years to come, be seen by historians as a "cunning indicator of the decline of the West and the rise of the East".^[21] Despite the criticism the Olympic Stadium has been nominated for the 2012 Stirling Prize in architecture.^[22] The stadium lost out to the Sainsbury Laboratory at the University of Cambridge.^[23]

Amanda Baillieu writing in Building Design challenged the designer's claims that the stadium is environmentally sustainable and good value for money. Instead, it is asserted that the reality will be the opposite. In particular, she claimed that:

• the temporary roof could not be reused to cover the permanent 25,000 seating area – given the difference in size;
• it is unlikely that the removed seating would be wanted for any other event e.g. the Glasgow Commonwealth games; and
• the costs involved in dismantling the stadium – and surrounding "pods" – has not been factored into the estimated cost.^[24]

The cost of £537 million compared to cost of 1908 Olympic Stadium £60,000 (£5,629,148.93 adjusted with up to 2010 inflation rate).^[25]

Post-Olympics [edit]

On 12 November 2010, it was announced that two bids had been shortlisted for the stadium post-Olympics. They are a joint bid from Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), with the second bid from West Ham United F.C. and Newham Council.^[26] The former bid would maintain the 80,000 capacity, while the latter would reduce it to 60,000.

Bids [edit]

Bid 1

AEG & Tottenham Hotspur

Artist's impression of the proposed new stadium by AEG and Tottenham Hotspur

These joint bidders had originally expressed individual interest in the venue but submitted a joint bid to take over. AEG is the company that redeveloped the loss making Millennium Dome exhibition venue in South East London into the profitable music venue The O2. When the formal bidding process opened, little was known of AEG's plans for the stadium, but they were described as among the front-runners of interested parties, along with West Ham.^[27] On 26 July 2010, it was rumoured that Tottenham might be interested in taking over the stadium post-Games. The club have plans to build a new stadium adjacent to their current home, but the capacity could not reach that of the Olympic Stadium, making a move much more attractive to the club.

Bid 2

West Ham United and Newham Council

Following the takeover in 2010 by David Gold and David Sullivan, the new owners of West Ham United expressed their desire to make the stadium as the club's new home. With Boris Johnson expressing his desire for a football team to take over the stadium after the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics this seemed the most likely option.^[28] At the opening of the formal bid process, West Ham United were considered favourites once they reversed from their initial opposition to keeping the running track as well as planning a £100m conversion to create a 60,000 capacity venue, which would also host international football, international athletics, as well as Essex County Cricket Club, international Twenty20 cricket matches, NFL games and Live Nation events.^[29]

Artist's impression of the proposed redeveloped stadium by West Ham United and Newham Council

Originally expressed interest

The legacy plan for the stadium originally involved its conversion into a 25,000- to 30,000-seat athletics stadium with a sports training, science and medicine centre following the 2012 Paralympics. Media reports, however, have suggested that several potential tenants were interested in moving to the stadium after the games, among them the England and Wales Cricket Board, along with several London cricket, football and rugby clubs:

• England and Wales Cricket Board, Kent County Cricket Club,^[30] Middlesex County Cricket Club,^[31] Essex County Cricket Club:^[32] The oval shape of the stadium is ideal for cricket, and the stadium's projected capacity post-Olympics is considerably higher than other comparable cricket venues.

• English 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup bid: London United, the body responsible for identifying which football stadia in London should be incorporated into a World Cup bid, had expressed serious interest in also using the stadium as a football venue.^[33]

• London Wasps: It was reported in the London press and nationally that the London Wasps rugby union team could move from their home in High Wycombe to the vacant Olympic Stadium.^[34] However, there was opposition from the Buckinghamshire public and some of Wasps players, as Wasps now contribute to community life and have built up a solid fan base in the area that would be hard to recreate in East London.^[35]

• Saracens R.F.C.: Saracens Chairman Nigel Wray put in a bid to see the North London club move from Vicarage Road which they share with Watford F.C. to East London.^[36]

• London Skolars R.L.F.C.: Rugby League Championship One club London Skolars have also expressed an interest to move into the stadium following the Olympics. This would form the basis of a Super League licence application. However, no official moves have yet been made.

• The National Football League, the top professional league in American football, had been looking at the potential of a franchise in London due to interest shown in the International Series games played at London's Wembley Stadium. The as-built Olympic Stadium would easily meet the league's requirements for seating capacity, and would have no trouble accommodating an American football field, which is about 5 metres longer than a FIFA-standard association football pitch but nearly 20 metres narrower.^[37]

• Leyton Orient F.C.: The closest club geographically, Leyton Orient announced in November 2007 that they were in negotiations regarding permanent tenancy after the games.^[38] This would allow for redevelopment of their existing Brisbane Road stadium and provide a regular use for the Olympic and Paralympic venue.

• Major League Baseball: Clive Russell of MLB International confirmed that stadium was under consideration as a possible venue for MLB games in Europe. Although the stadium's sight lines are a potential issue, MLB has measured the stadium and confirmed it is a suitable size for a baseball game.^[39]

Despite several rounds of negotiations with potential tenants, LOCOG has elected to adhere to its bid commitment to provide a legacy for athletics at the stadium, with capacity reduced to a more financially viable 25,000. However, the newly elected Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has stated that all parties need to look carefully at the legacy plans for the stadium and has not ruled out use by either a professional football or rugby team. This in mind, the contract for building the stadium clearly stated that it must stay as a usable athletics track available for competition and training at any time.

After receiving and pre-screening over 100 expressions of interest, the formal bidding process of selecting the post-Olympics user of the stadium opened on 18 August 2010. It was to run until 30 September, after which the OPLC would draw up a shortlist, with a view to selecting a tenant by the end of the financial year, by 31 March. The winning bidder is required to support the regeneration of the area, and retain the stadium as a "distinctive physical symbol".^[27][40]

Decision [edit]

On 11 February 2011, the OPLC selected West Ham United & Newham Council as the preferred bidder to take over the stadium after the 2012 Games. The decision in favour of West Ham's bid was unanimous.^[41] However, Leyton Orient complained that the stadium is too close to their ground and would breach FA rules. They claim that West Ham's plans could force them into bankruptcy.^[42] On 3 March 2011, West Ham United's proposed move to the stadium was approved by the British government and London mayor Boris Johnson.^[43]

Judicial review and independent investigation [edit]

Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and Leyton Orient F.C. applied for a judicial review to overturn the OPLC's decision; however, this appeal was rejected in June 2011.^[44] Tottenham Hotspur then appealed the decision not to have a review on 29 June 2011.^[45]

The Olympic Legacy Company announced on 5 July 2011 that an independent review into the awarding of the Olympic Park Stadium to West Ham United was to be carried out following the discovery on 30 June 2011 that an employee, Dionne Knight had been engaged by West Ham United to carry out consultancy work relating to the stadium without permission of the OPLC. Knight had already declared to the OPLC that she was in a personal relationship with a director of West Ham United, and was suspended whilst a possible conflict of interest was investigated.^[46] On 22 August 2011, the independent investigation ruled that the process was not compromised and thus the bid process will not be reopened.^[47]

On 23 August, the day before Tottenham Hotspur were due in court, they staged "intense negotiations" with the office of the Mayor of London, and looked set to drop all claims for a review and be offered funding for their own stadium.^[48] However, the next day Tottenham did attend court despite being close to striking a deal about their own stadium, thus allowing West Ham to move into the Olympic Stadium by 2014. Tottenham and Leyton Orient won a review of the decision, being told that they had an arguable case.^[49] The review was scheduled to take place on 18 October 2011. Even if Tottenham had abandoned the review, due to being granted a new stadium, Orient were expected to continue, with its owner Barry Hearn calling the decision to grant a review "a great day for the little man".^[50] It had been reported that if the judicial review had ordered a re-run of the bidding process then a clause would have been inserted stipulating that the winning bidder must retain a running track within the stadium itself.^[51]

Tenancy bids [edit]

On 11 October 2011, the deal to sell the stadium to West Ham collapsed.^[52] West Ham immediately announced plans to become tenants of the stadium.^[53][54] On 18 October, Leyton Orient submitted an application to the Football League for permission for a move to the stadium. Chairman Barry Hearn said, "We are asking for a 25,000-seater stadium and we want to see if we can get around the athletics track. It has to stay, we know that. But can we build up, if not down, and see if it's possible to get it covered while we play?".^[55]

In February 2012, 16 parties were interested in the stadium.^[56] By March 2012, West Ham was named as one of the four bidders for the stadium. A decision was to be made by the OPLC in May 2012 and ratified by June,^[57] but the deadline for submitting bids was extended. The OPLC (now known as the London Legacy Development Corporation) aimed to have a contract in place by October.^[58] Hearn called for the West Ham bid to be disqualified in April 2012 for not having the permission of the Football League.^[59] The other three bidders were named as:^[60][61]

• Intelligent Transport Services, in conjunction with F1.
• University College of Football Business (UCFB), an affiliate of Bucks New University.
• Essex County Cricket Club with the University of East London.^[62]

In April 2012, the Olympic Park Legacy Company were taken over by the Mayor's office and renamed London Legacy Development Corporation. Margaret Ford would continue her role of chair form the OPLC until the Games are over.^[63]

On 30 May, Barry Hearn, chairman of Leyton Orient, said that he would consider a groundshare with West Ham as he agreed with the covering of the track and would now talk with the authorities.^[64] In June 2012, West Ham stated, that despite Hearn saying that he would consider a groudshare, they would not consider this with Leyton Orient. The club also added that no talks had taken place.^[65] However, Hearn in July reiterated the idea claiming that it would be ideal. He also added that it didn't matter what West Ham thought as it was up to the Olympic people to decide as he was applying for tenancy.^[66]

Daniel Moylan, chairman of London Legacy Development Corporation, was sacked on 12 September, with other board members being frustrated with his style. Mayor Boris Johnson replaced him.^[67] Following the conclusion of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the cost of converting the stadium had risen from £95 million to £130 million. By 20 September, the famous pixels had already been removed as they were only on loan from Crystal; however, according to Paul Kelso "reinstating the system would help establish the Olympic Stadium as a concert venue in competition with Wembley and Twickenham." Kelso also learnt that the triangular floodlights could be removed when the new roof is fitted as the cost of keeping them is too great. However West Ham want to keep the lights as they would like to keep the stadium looking as it did during the Games, and may consider keeping the wrap on the outside.^[68]

On 15 October, it was revealed that Johnson and the LLDC were considering installing retractable seating. Adding the seats would delay the stadium's opening until 2015. Following discussions, temporary seating was considered only a short-term option, as the stadium would be taken out for a month during the summer whilst they are erected and dismantled. This led to the stadium possibly rejecting football and surviving on subsides. If it went ahead, the plan would see the lower tier of the stadium rebuilt, which is estimated to cost between £160 and 200 million.^[69]

On 31 October, it was revealed that Johnson had held exploratory talks with the National Football League about holding games, however the venue cannot play host to any matches before 2017 due to Wembley having exclusive rights.^[70][71] Dennis Hone, chief executive of the London Legacy Development Corporation, revealed in November 2012 that the stadium would not meet its reopening deadline of 2014. Instead the stadium would reopen in August 2015 with the stadium retaining a capacity of around 50,000 for athletics; Horne also thought that American football would work well with the track.^[72]

In December 2012, West Ham were named as the preferred bidder for the stadium with a separate operator co-ordinating community and sporting use, as well as concerts and events.^[73] Leyton Orient's bid was rejected due to its commercial viability and the bid from Intelligent Transport Services, in conjunction with Formula One, was rejected for having too much speculation and uncertainty in their business plan.^[74] However, with so much public money going into the stadium and its redevelopment, the BBC learnt that David Gold and David Sullivan must share any profits they make if they sell the club.^[75][76] West Ham were given three months to improve the terms of their deal or lose the stadium; with Johnson going with plan B without football.^[74] The two parties seemed to find common ground in February 2013, with West Ham agreeing to paying £2.5 million in rent per year. They additionally promised to pay back any extra cost for the roof and seats within ten years.^[77][78] Gold stated at the beginning of March that a deal could be complete by the middle of the month.^[79] On 6 March, Barry Hearn stated that he would mount another legal challenge as he believed that the rules set out be the LLDC had not been followed. Hearn also said that he felt that Leyton Orient's proposed ground share had been ignored and not properly explored. On 22 March 2013, West Ham secured a 99-year lease deal, with the stadium planned to be used as their home ground from the 2016–2017 season.^[80]

London Anniversary Games [edit]

Charles Sale reported in the Daily Mail during December 2012 that the Legacy Development Corporation were keen to take financial advantage by hosting events in the stadium due to the work to convert the stadium not starting until autumn 2013. Live Nation were trying to organise music concerts whilst the London Athletics Grand Prix could be switched from Crystal Palace and hosted on the anniversary of the Olympics, though sound systems and scoreboards would have to be reintegrated into the stadium.^[81] On 24 January, it was confirmed that the London Athletics Grand Prix would be switched to the stadium.^[82] In February 2013, it was announced that after the Diamond League event the stadium would hold a Paralympic athletics event on 28 July.^[83]

2015 Rugby World Cup [edit]

In July 2012 the Olympic Park Legacy Company submitted a bid to England Rugby 2015 to host some matches of the 2015 Rugby World Cup (rugby union). It was mooted that the stadium could hold pool matches and even the third place play–off. However the main sticking point would be whether it could meet the International Rugby Board's demands for the tournament including being free from advertising. If successful the stadium would be likely to replace the Emirates Stadium.^[84] In September 2012 it was confirmed that if the stadium had a tenant by the time the stadia were chosen then it could appear.^[85] In October 2012 the stadium was short listed for the competition.^[86] However by February 2013 the London Legacy Development Corporation and England 2015 were pessimistic about the stadium being used during competition. The main issue being that work on the roof, which requires cranes, would take place at the same time as the work on the seats whilst the pitch would be ripped up whilst under soil heating was installed. Officials had talked about using the stadium without a roof but were worried about the cost and embarrassment factors if the plan to complete the stadium was delayed.^[87] On 2 May 2013, it was officially announced that the Olympic Stadium will host 4 Pool matches during the 2015 Rugby World Cup. It will also host the Bronze final.^[88]

2017 World Athletics and IPC Athletics World Championships [edit]

London originally bid to host the 2015 World Athletics Championships using the Olympic Stadium. It went up against Beijing's Olympic Stadium and the Polish city of Chorzów. However, the stadium had to pull out of the running of hosting the championships due to uncertainties arising out of the timing of the announcement of who would operate the stadium after the Olympics, thus gifting Beijing the championships.^[89] With issues resolved over the stadium's future, London again used the stadium to bid for the 2017 World Athletics Championships.^[90] The bid was made official in August with Lord Coe personally submitting the bid a few weeks later at the 2011 World Athletic Championships in Daegu. London's Mayor Boris Johnson and the British government backed the bid.^[91] Following Tottenham winning the right to a review on 18 October 2011, just three weeks before the IAAF vote on the 2017 championships host, Lord Coe, on 25 August 2011, stated that the bid would be unaffected by the legal battle. UK Athletics chairman Ed Warner added, "Whatever the outcome of that process there is going to be a track in that stadium and that's what matters and that's the commitment we're making to the IAAF."^[50] On 11 November 2011, the IAAF officially awarded the 2017 World Championships to London.^[92]

In October 2012 it was revealed that London was the only formal bidder for the IPC Athletics World Championships. Discussions were underway between UK Athletics, the Greater London Authority (GLA) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) before the success of the 2012 Summer Paralympics. The original plan was for the championships to be held at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, but the GLA will make up any of the additional cost to hold it in London. The deal would be the first time that both the Paralympic and able-bodied World Athletics Championships would be held in the same location. The IPC Athletics World Championships are scheduled to take place a month before the able-bodied event.^[93] The World Championships were formally confirmed in December 2012.^[94]

Concerts [edit]

In January 2013 music concert promoter Live Nation won the right to stage shows at the stadium and in the surrounding Park.^[95] The stadium is set to host music events in early July 2013.^[95]

References [edit]

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Olympic Stadium (London)

• London 2012 Olympics profile

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Academy Football stadia City of Coventry Stadium Hampden Park Millennium Stadium Old Trafford St James' Park Category  Commons v t e Venues of the 2012 Summer Paralympics Olympic Zone Aquatics Centre Basketball Arena Eton Manor Copper Box London Velodrome Olympic Stadium Riverbank Arena River Zone ExCeL Greenwich Park North Greenwich Arena Royal Artillery Barracks Outside London Brands Hatch Dorney Lake Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy v t e Olympic venues in athletics 1896: Marathon (city), Panathenaic Stadium 1900: Croix-Catelan Stadium 1904: Francis Field 1908: White City Stadium 1912: Stockholm Olympic Stadium 1920: Olympisch Stadion 1924: Stade de Colombes 1928: Olympic Stadium 1932: Olympic Stadium, Riverside Drive at Griffith Park 1936: Avus Motor Road, Olympic Stadium 1948: Empire Stadium 1952: Olympic Stadium 1956: Melbourne Cricket Ground 1960: Arch of Constantine, Raccordo Anulare, Stadio Olimpico, Via Appia Antica, Via Cristoforo Colombo 1964: Fuchu City, Karasuyama-machi, National Stadium, Sasazuka-machi, Shinjuku 1968: Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Zócalo 1972: Olympiastadion 1976: Montreal Botanical Garden, Olympic Stadium, Streets of Montreal 1980: Grand Arena, Streets of Moscow 1984: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Santa Monica College, Streets of Los Angeles, Streets of Santa Monica 1988: Olympic Stadium, Streets of Seoul 1992: Estadi Olímpic de Monjuïc, Marathon course, Mataró, Walking course 1996: Marathon course, Olympic Stadium, Walking course 2000: Marathon course, North Sydney, Olympic Stadium 2004: Marathon (city), Olympic Stadium, Panathenaic Stadium, Stadium at Olympia 2008: Beijing National Stadium, Olympic Green Promenade Walking course, Streets of Beijing Marathon course 2012: Marathon Course, Olympic Stadium 2016: Flamengo Park, João Havelange Stadium, Sambódromo v t e IAAF World Championships in Athletics stadiums Helsinki 1983 Rome 1987 Tokyo 1991 Stuttgart 1993 Gothenburg 1995 Athens 1997 Seville 1999 Edmonton 2001 Saint-Denis 2003 Helsinki 2005 Osaka 2007 Berlin 2009 Daegu 2011 Moscow 2013 Beijing 2015 London 2017 v t e London landmarks Buildings and structures Bridges Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges London Bridge Millennium Bridge Tower Bridge Waterloo Bridge Westminster Bridge Entertainment venues Cinemas Empire, Leicester Square London IMAX Odeon Leicester Square Sports venues All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club Emirates Stadium Lord's Cricket Ground Olympic Stadium The Oval Royal Thames Yacht Club Stamford Bridge Twickenham Stadium Wembley Stadium White Hart Lane Theatres Coliseum Theatre Haymarket Theatre Royal National Theatre Royal Opera House Shakespeare's Globe Other Earls Court Exhibition Centre Hammersmith Apollo The O2 Arena Royal Albert Hall Royal Festival Hall Wembley Arena ExCeL Alexandra Palace Government 10 Downing Street Admiralty Arch Bank of England City Hall County Hall Guildhall Horse Guards Mansion House The National Archives Old Bailey Palace of 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Axe 122 Leadenhall Street Broadgate Tower BT Tower Centre Point Citigroup Centre Heron Tower Lloyd's building Millbank Tower One Canada Square The Pinnacle Riverside South St George Wharf Tower Senate House The Shard Shell Centre Strata SE1 Tower 42 Structures Albert Memorial ArcelorMittal Orbit Cleopatra's Needle Crystal Palace transmitting station London Eye London Wall Marble Arch Monument to the Great Fire Nelson's Column Thames Barrier Transport Emirates Air Line Heathrow Airport King's Cross railway station Liverpool Street station Marylebone station Paddington station St Pancras railway station Waterloo station Other Barbican Estate Battersea Power Station British Library Kew Gardens Lambeth Palace London Zoo One Hyde Park OXO Tower St Bartholomew's Hospital Smithfield Market Somerset House Parks Royal Parks Bushy Park Green Park Greenwich Park Hyde Park Kensington Gardens Regent's Park Richmond Park St. James's Park Other Battersea Park Burgess Park Clapham Common Epping Forest Finsbury Park Hampstead Heath Holland Park Mitcham Common Trent Park Victoria Park Wandsworth Common Wimbledon Common Squares and public spaces Covent Garden Horse Guards Parade Leicester Square Oxford Circus Parliament Square Piccadilly Circus Trafalgar Square Streets Baker Street Bishopsgate Bond Street Cannon Street Carnaby Street Cheapside Denmark Street Fenchurch Street Fleet Street Greek Street Jermyn Street Kensington High Street King's Road Lombard Street Oxford Street The Mall Park Lane Piccadilly Portobello Road Regent Street Shaftesbury Avenue Strand Threadneedle Street Tottenham Court Road Whitehall Buildings and structures under construction shown in italics