8 Olympic Host Cities Imaged from Space
The 2016 Olympic games are in full swing, and the sports junkies here at Planet have been diligently watching the games on TV and marveling at the host city, Rio de Janeiro, from a unique vantage point…Low Earth Orbit.
We snapped this image on Day One of the 2016 Olympic Games. While the city may look serene from space, a flurry of sporting activity was happening below. At the time our satellite captured this image, crew teams were rowing qualifying races in Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, the mens cycling road race was winding through the lush mountain greenery of Tijuca National Park (left), and beach volleyball qualifications were underway on the world-famous Copacabana Beach (middle).
While the games continue down below, our constellation of satellites orbits above, dutifully taking pictures of the rest of the planet. Take a look at what some of history’s more unique Olympic host cities look like from space.
Olympia, Greece: 776 BCE Games
First stop: Olympia, Greece — the site of the very first Olympic Games. Nowadays, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is host to flocks of tourists, interested in the archaeological site’s large temple complex and sporting venues. The most visible part of the site is just north of the river. It’s a small rectangular dirt runway surrounded by grass — this was the world’s first Olympic stadium. In this stadium, spectators watched the original events of the games, which included chariot racing, wrestling, discus, javelin and pankration: an ancient martial art.
Athens, Greece: 1896 & 2004 Games
Athens, Greece played host to the very first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and the 2004 summer games. If you look just east of the world-famous Acropolis, you’ll find the all-white, marble Panathenaic Stadium (bottom) that was built to host the 1896 games. 241 athletes from 14 countries attended these games, participating in 43 total events.
For comparison, the massive Athens Olympic Center that hosted the 2004 games is clearly visible from space. In 2004, 10,625 athletes from 201 countries participated in 301 events.
Both complexes are still used today. Today, the Panathenaic stadium serves as the finish line of the Athens Classic Marathon, and remains one of the city’s popular tourist attractions. The Athens Olympic Center hosts international sporting events and large concerts.
Helsinki, Finland: 1952 Games
Helsinki, Finland is less than 500 miles from the Arctic Circle, but that didn’t stop the IOC from naming it host to the 1952 summer games. Helsinki is the northernmost city to host the summer games. In this image, the stadium complex still stands north of the city center, just to the east of the north/south rail line.
Rowing and sailing events were held on Meilahti, the lush green island extending into Seurasaari Bay (left), and Liuskasaari Island (bottom right) just to the south of the city center. Today, Liuskasaari is still a sailing hotspot. In this image, you can see its large, busy marina full of watercraft.
Atlanta, United States: 1996 Games
Highways criss-cross urban Atlanta; and in between them you can see tons of Olympic venues.
In the lead up to 1996, Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Stadium was built with the Olympics and a local sports team, the Atlanta Braves, in mind. The large oval-shaped stadium fit a track and field circuit in the middle. After the games were over, tens of thousands of seats were removed as the stadium was renovated into a smaller ballpark — known today as Turner Field. If you look closely, you can see a curved road just north of Turner Field that traces the stadium’s former size.
Other events like gymnastics, basketball and handball were held at another famous Atlanta venue, the Georgia Dome.
Bonus points if you can you spot Atlanta’s newest stadium. A Dove satellite captured Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new home of the Atlanta Falcons, in mid-construction. Do you see it in any of these Atlanta images?
London, United Kingdom: 2012, 1948 & 1908 Games
From space, we can spot the London’s 2012 Olympic Stadium surrounded by an extensive Olympic Park Zone (top right). While the stadium remains, many of the Olympic Zone venues moved elsewhere and were repurposed. Parks and cleared land parcels awaiting redevelopment now surround the zone’s remaining venues.
Several of the city’s famous landmarks were utilized for events in 2012. Triathletes swam the length of Hyde Park’s famous Serpentine before cycling past Buckingham Palace. Marathon runners caught scenic views of the palace, St. James Park, the Houses of Parliament, and the London Eye.
Beijing, China: 2008 & 2022 Games
The silver Beijing National Stadium, or “Bird’s Nest”, became an iconic symbol of the 2008 summer games in Beijing. When looked at from space, the massive 80,000 seat Bird’s Nest and surrounding Olympic Park seem at home amongst the city’s contemporary large-scale housing developments and massive super-blocks.
The Olympic Park will see more action in just a few years. Beijing will host the 2022 winter games. Come 2022, the Bird’s Nest will be the only stadium to host both a summer and winter games.
Tokyo, Japan: 1964 & 2020 Games
Last stop: Tokyo — the home of the upcoming 2020 Summer Olympics. In 1964, Tokyo became the first city in Asia to host the games. Japan invested a herculean amount of thought and technology into the ‘64 games. Tokyo built infrastructure improvements like new highways and hotels, and high rises to accommodate tourists. A new National Olympic stadium (of course) was built in Shibuya (pictured). Japan even expanded their infrastructure improvements into space, partnering with the USA to launch a new satellite to facilitate world-wide live television broadcasts.
The plans for the 2020 games, by comparison, are far more subdued. With little room for expansion in Tokyo’s urban center, several of the venues for the ‘64 games will be re-used. National Olympic stadium, however, will be rebuilt. Checkout the new stadium’s sleek, understated design.
In the lead up to 2020, our enormous constellation of Dove satellites will be capturing the new stadium’s construction on a day-to-day basis from orbit. To see more iconic cities from space, browse through our online imagery gallery and follow us on Twitter.
