Fisht Olympic Stadium

Summary

Fisht Olympic Stadium (Russian: Олимпийский стадион «Фишт», Olimpiyskiy Stadion Fisht) is an outdoor stadium in Sochi, Russia. Located in Sochi Olympic Park and named after Mount Fisht, the 40,000-capacity stadium was constructed for the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, where it served as the venue for their opening and closing ceremonies.

Fisht Olympic Stadium
Fisht Olympic Stadium in January 2018.
Map
Full nameFisht Olympic Stadium
LocationSochi, Krasnodar Krai, Russia
Coordinates43°24′08″N 39°57′22″E / 43.4022667°N 39.9561111°E / 43.4022667; 39.9561111
OwnerGovernment of Russia (Olympstroy)
Capacity47,659 (Official)
44,287 (2018 FIFA World Cup)[3]
Field size105 x 68 m
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Broke ground2010
Built2011–2013
Opened2013[1]
Construction costUS $779 million
ArchitectPopulous,[2] Buro Happold
Tenants
PFC Sochi (2018–present)
Russia national football team (selected matches)
Russia national rugby union team (selected matches)

The stadium was originally built as an enclosed facility; it was re-opened in 2016 as an open-air football stadium, to host matches as part of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup when it was known simply as Fisht Stadium.[4]

History edit

Fisht Olympic Stadium was designed by Global Design Practice Populous and British design consultancy BuroHappold Engineering. The stadium's roof was built from approximately 36,500 square metres (393,000 sq ft) of ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) and was designed to give the roof the appearance of snowy peaks. The bowl opens to the north, allowing a direct view of the Krasnaya Polyana Mountains, and the upper deck is open to the south, allowing a view of the Black Sea.[5][6]

The canopy over the Western and Eastern stands is covered with translucent ethylene tetrafluoroethylene. The material offers superior strength and corrosion resistance. Fisht is a UEFA category 4 stadium.[7]

  • The architectural design was developed by Populous, a company with previous experience in designing similar facilities for Johannesburg.[7]
  • 2007. Sochi was elected as host of the 2014 Winter Olympics by the International Olympic Committee.[8]
  • 2010. Construction of the Fisht Stadium began.[9] The Architect of the stadium is Damon Lavelle.[10] A symbolic capsule was planted bearing the message “Believe in yourself, and together we will win” and marking the start of construction.
  • 2011. The initial design was altered. According to some sources, changes were made at the request of Director of the Olympics Opening Ceremony Konstantin Ernst.[11]
  • 2013. Construction of the stadium was completed. The stadium was the last Olympics facility to be commissioned. Having opened in 2013, it cost US$779 million to build the stadium.[1] The stadium complex now serves as a training centre and match venue for the Russia national football team, and served as a site for matches during the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.[12][1] The stadium's capacity will be temporarily expanded to 41,220 through temporary seating at the open ends of the stadium.[13] The capacity will be reduced to 40,000 after the World Cup in 2018.
  • 2014. The opening ceremony of Winter Olympic Games was held in February 2014 followed by the opening and closing ceremonies of the Paralympic Winter Games in March 2014.[14]
  • 2015. Renovations for the FIFA World Cup started.[15]
  • 2017. Renovations for the FIFA World Cup were completed.[15]
  • 2018. The capacity was reduced to 40,000 after the World Cup.

Location and access edit

Fisht Stadium is located in Sochi, in the Sochi Olympic Park in Adler, south of the Sochi Airport, at 15 Olympic Avenue.[16] The Fisht Stadium can be reached by buses 57, 117, 125, 134, 173. A suburban electric train Sochi–Adler–Olympic Park also provides access to the stadium.[17]

Safety and security edit

By 15 March 2017, the stadium obtained a building safety certificate, detailing its evacuation routes, fire-fighting systems and emergency response procedures.[18] The certificate was a legal confirmation that Fisht was ready to host matches of the FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup.[19] During the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches, the stadium will be served by 2,000 surveillance cameras [20] and 600 EMERCOM employees will be ensuring the security at Fisht.[21]

Post-Olympics usage edit

 
Fisht Olympic Stadium following the 2014 Winter Olympics.

In January 2015, a 3 billion ruble (US$46 million) project began to renovate the stadium in preparation for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup; among other changes, the closed roof was removed in order to make the stadium compliant with FIFA regulations. The work was expected to be completed by June 2016, but the completion date was pushed back to November 2016.[22][23]

After the World Cup, FC Dynamo Saint Petersburg of the second division moved from St. Petersburg to Sochi to play in the Fisht Stadium.[24] The team became PFC Sochi, the first professional club in the city since the disbanding of FC Zhemchuzhina-Sochi in 2013.[25]

 
Panoramic view of the interior of the stadium .

Commemoration edit

In October 2013, the Central Bank of Russia issued a commemorative 100-ruble note to mark 100 days before the opening ceremonies of the 2014 Winter Olympics. The blue-tinted banknote depicts a flying snowboarder on one side, and on the other the Fisht Olympic Stadium and a firebird.[26][27]

Tournament results edit

2017 FIFA Confederations Cup edit

Date Time Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
19 June 2017 18:00   Australia 2–3   Germany Group B 28,605[28]
21 June 2017 21:00   Mexico 2–1   New Zealand Group A 25,133[29]
25 June 2017 18:00   Germany 3–1   Cameroon Group B 30,230[30]
29 June 2017 21:00 4–1   Mexico Semi-final 37,923[31]

2018 FIFA World Cup edit

Date Time Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
15 June 2018 21:00   Portugal 3–3   Spain Group B 43,866[32]
18 June 2018 18:00   Belgium 3–0   Panama Group G 43,257[33]
23 June 2018 21:00   Germany 2–1   Sweden Group F 44,287[34]
26 June 2018 17:00   Australia 0–2   Peru Group C 44,073[35]
30 June 2018 21:00   Uruguay 2–1   Portugal Round of 16 44,287[36][37]
7 July 2018 21:00   Russia 2–2 (a.e.t.) (3–4 pen.)   Croatia Quarter-finals

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Fisht Olympic Stadium". Sochi2014.com. Archived from the original on 26 December 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  2. ^ "Sochi 2014 Main Stadium". portfolio.populous.com.
  3. ^ "Fisht Stadium". FIFA. Archived from the original on 18 November 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Fisht Olympic Stadium". olympic.org. 1 November 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  5. ^ Design for two major Sochi 2014 venues approved Archived 31 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ [1] Archived 8 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ a b "Fisht Olympic Stadium (Russian: Олимпийскийстадион "Фишт") is an outdoor stadium in Sochi, Russia". nationallightngr.com. 28 June 2018. Archived from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Sochi 2014: Seven Years of Preparation". theatlantic.com. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Stadium Boom Begins in Russia". thefalsenine.co.uk. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Host City - Sochi". theworldgame.sbs.com.au. 1 April 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Sochi opening ceremony glitch: 'This is bad, but it does not humiliate us'". telegraph.co.uk. 8 February 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  12. ^ "FIFA Picks Cities for World Cup 2018". RIA Novosti. 29 September 2012. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  13. ^ "Fisht Stadium". FIFA. Archived from the original on 8 June 2016.
  14. ^ "Sochi 2014: Olympic venue guide". bbc.com. 5 February 2014. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  15. ^ a b "Fisht Olympic Stadium". stadiumdb.com. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  16. ^ "A Short History of Sochi's Olympic Stadium". themoscowtimes.com. 1 June 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  17. ^ "Fisht Olympic Stadium: Olympic Ave, Sochi, Krasnodarskiy kray, 354340, Russia". football-stadiums.co.uk. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  18. ^ "Приложение. Типовой паспорт безопасности опасного объекта". base.garant.ru.
  19. ^ "Стадион "Фишт" получит паспорт безопасности объекта до 15 марта". РБК.
  20. ^ "Системы видеонаблюдения и информационной безопасности стадиона "Фишт" готовы к ЧМ". rsport.ria.ru.
  21. ^ "Систему "Безопасный город" планируется запустить в Сочи и Краснодаре к ЧМ-2018". tass.ru.
  22. ^ "Russia to Spend $50 Million Taking Roof Off Sochi Olympic Stadium". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
  23. ^ "Russia 2018 preparations suffer setback as Sochi Olympic Stadium completion date pushed back". InsideTheGames.biz. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
  24. ^ Davlashyan, Naria (6 June 2018). "Sochi's empty stadium reflects Russian sports struggles". The Washington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved 15 June 2018.[dead link]
  25. ^ Rothwell, Elliot (28 May 2018). "World Cup, global wealth transforming Sochi's unique beach culture". ESPN. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  26. ^ "100 days to go to Sochi 2014". Populous. 31 October 2013. Archived from the original on 23 April 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2013.
  27. ^ Zaccardi, Nick (30 October 2013). "Russia Central Bank issues special Sochi Olympic banknote". Olympic Talk. NBC Sports.
  28. ^ "Match report – Group B – Australia - Germany" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 19 June 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
  29. ^ "Match report – Group A – Mexico - New Zealand" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 21 June 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2017. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  30. ^ "Match report – Group B – Germany - Cameroon" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 25 June 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  31. ^ "Match report – Semi-final – Germany - Mexico" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 29 June 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2017. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  32. ^ "Match report – Group B – Portugal - Spain" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 15 June 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  33. ^ "Match report – Group G – Belgium - Panama" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
  34. ^ "Match report – Group F – Germany - Sweden" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 23 June 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  35. ^ "Match report – Group C – Australia - Peru" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  36. ^ "Match report – Round of 16 – Uruguay - Portugal" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 30 June 2018. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  37. ^ "Match report – Quarter-final – Russia - Croatia" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 7 July 2018. Retrieved 7 July 2018.

External links edit

  Media related to Fisht Olympic Stadium at Wikimedia Commons

  • Fisht Stadium
  • Fisht Olympic stadium construction