THEN AND NOW: What 10 former Olympic stadiums look like today

Gabbi ShawAug 1, 2024, 23:05 IST

A general view of the Bird's Nest stadium, the venue for opening and closing ceremonies for the 2022 Winter Olympics.Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

The 2024 Olympics are underway in Paris.
Some Olympic venues are abandoned after the games, but the main stadiums often get a second life.

The 2024 Olympic opening ceremony was different compared to years past. At the Paris Olympics, viewers watched as athletes sailed down the Seine in a fleet of boats, while the streets were filled with performers.

Normally, though, the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics are held in a huge stadium. Many, in fact, are built specifically for this purpose.

But what happens to them after the games? Some are renovated and turned into sporting arenas. Others are left somewhat abandoned, as the city doesn't have the need for the thousands of seats. Or they're destroyed entirely — in Lake Placid, New York, the stadium used for the opening ceremony was demolished soon after the 1980 Games.

Here's what Olympic stadiums looked like at their peak, and how they've changed since the torch was extinguished.

Berlin hosted the Summer Olympics in 1936, mainly from the Olympiastadion Berlin, or Olympic Stadium.

The Berlin Olympics were held from August 1 to 16 in 1936.Faulbaum/ullstein bild via Getty Images

Almost 90 years later, some of the venues from the Berlin Olympics are empty and abandoned, but the Olympiastadion is still being used now.

The German soccer team Hertha BSC uses the Olympiastadion as its home stadium.Simon Hofmann/Bongarts/Getty Images

In 2008, the Summer Olympics were held in Beijing. The festivities opened and closed at the Beijing National Stadium.

The opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium.Clive Rose/Getty Images

In 2022, the Beijing National Stadium became one of the few Olympic stadiums that hosted both summer and winter games.

The Beijing National Stadium in 2020.Artyom Ivanov\TASS via Getty Images

When Tokyo first hosted the Olympics in 1964, the National Stadium was used as the site of the opening and closing ceremonies.

More than 80,000 spectators packed Tokyo's National Stadium for the opening ceremony in 1964.Bettman/Getty Images

The Japan National Stadium opened in 2016 on the grounds of the original stadium, and it was the hub for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

It was the main venue for the Tokyo Olympics.CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images

Montreal's biggest Olympic venue, the Stade Olympique, opened for the 1976 Summer Games.

You can see a crane in the background.S&G/PA Images via Getty Images

The stadium hasn't had a permanent tenant since the Montreal Expos left in 2004.

Montreal's Olympic Stadium has been going through tough times.DeAgostini/Getty Images

The opening ceremony of the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, was held at the temporary Lake Placid Equestrian Stadium.

The entire stadium was temporary.Steve Powell/Allsport/Getty Images

You can still visit the Olympic grounds in Lake Placid and look at various venues and locations, but the Lake Placid Equestrian Stadium is gone.

The stadium is gone, but the equestrian fields remain.Google Maps

The closing ceremonies of the 1984 Games in Sarajevo were held inside the Zetra Olympic Hall.

The closing ceremonies for the 1984 Winter Olympics were held in the Zetra Ice Hall.Tony Triolo /Walt Disney Television via Getty Images

It's now called the Juan Antonio Samaranch Olympic Hall and sits next to a cemetery memorializing those who died during the siege of Sarajevo.

The graveyard next to the Olympic stadium.ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images

The centerpiece of the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta was Centennial Olympic Stadium.

Carl Lewis competed at the 1996 Centennial Olympics in Atlanta.Mike Powell /Allsport/Getty Images

It changed from Centennial Olympic Stadium to Turner Field to Center Parc Stadium.

Georgia State plays there now.Todd Kirkland/Getty Images

The Olympic Stadium of Athens, used for the 2004 Summer Games, is nicknamed "Spyros Louis" after the famed Greek Olympian.

The Olympics were originally held in Greece.Jean-Philippe KSIAZEK/AFP via Getty Images

Now, multiple Greek soccer teams share the stadium with touring musicians.

It was closed from October 2023 to May 2024 to fix the roof.ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images

Fisht Olympic Stadium was the site of the opening and closing ceremonies of Sochi 2014 in Russia.

The 2014 Olympics were the most expensive of all time. They cost $55 billion.Joe Scarnici/Getty Images

It was renovated to be an open-air arena in 2016 to make the field compliant with FIFA regulations.

The Fisht Stadium is now an enclosed stadium.Dmitry Feoktistov\TASS via Getty Images

The 2016 Summer Olympics were held in Rio de Janeiro. Both the opening and closing ceremonies were held in Maracanã Stadium.

Fireworks are always a big part of Olympic ceremonies.Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Maracanã Stadium fell into disrepair after the Olympics ended, but new managers acquired the stadium and invested in the arena.

Maracanã Stadium continues to be used to this day.Buda Mendes/Getty Images

Hidden details in the US women's gymnastics Olympic leotards feature nods to Paris and the 'Magnificent Seven'

Cookies on the Business Insider India website