POSTED: October 30th 2008
InDepth
Rethink hint on London stadium
KEIR RADNEDGE / Sports Features Communications
LONDON/BRUSSELS: A redeveloped 2012 Olympic Stadium might host Premier League football after all once the London Games have been wrapped up.
Originally it had been thought that the International Olympic Committee and its leadership wanted the stadium to remain as an athletics legacy. However, that appears to have been overridden, judging from the latest comments of IOC president Dr Jacques Rogge, by a greater concern in these credit crunch times to hunt down any danger of a “white elephant.”
West Ham United, Charlton Athletic and Tottenham Hotspur had all been linked with a possible interest in the stadium’s post-Games development – just as Manchester City moved into Eastlands from their historic Maine Road venue after the Commonwealth Games of 2002.
Tottenham’s possible interest is now effectively dead after the club’s decision to rebuild in North London while many Charlton fans oppose a move north of the Thames. That leaves West Ham in pole position even possibly sharing with lower-league neighbours Leyton Orient.
However, British athletics organisations may be reluctant to see a redevelopment which would certainly mean scrapping the Olympic track.
Rogge had hinted at a shift in policy when he suggested that the main concern for London 2012's organisers should be to avoid a legacy of waste.
He said: “If the best solution for the stadium is to transform the track into something else then we would be in favour of that. We had the same situation in Atlanta where the Olympic Stadium was changed into a baseball stadium which kept an interest for sport. We don’t have problems with that. I don't want to enter into specifics but we don't want to leave white elephants."
The London Development Agency will take control of the Olympic site after the Games and Paralympics have concluded in September 2012.
John Armitt, the chairman of Olympic Development Agency (ODA), the body responsible for building the Games, continues to maintain his doubts about a football future for the stadium. He said: “We had a legacy commitment to ensure the stadium was to be used for athletes and athletics. Is it possible to mix a Premier League club with an athletics stadium? That's not easy.
"The plan was always to reduce it in scale from an 80,000 to a 25,000-seat stadium. That's how it is being designed, that's how it is being built. If you wanted to use it for a Premier League club you would have to completely redesign it and I think we have gone past that point."
Construction work on the £525m stadium is currently ahead of schedule.
Keywords · 2012 Olympic Stadium · Premier League · London Games · International Olympic Committee · Jacques Rogge · West Ham United · London Development Agency · John Armitt · Olympic Development Agency (ODA)
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