Experts criticise Dome Mark II
Experts on stadium construction are increasingly giving the design of London's Olympic Stadium a good kicking. For example, Radio 5 had the architect of the City of Manchester stadium on air this morning and he reasonably made the point that an athletics track destroys the atmosphere from a football point of view.
Other industry experts are characterising it as a Dome Mark II, a folly for which finding a subsequent use is very challenging. It doesn't seem fit for any legacy purpose, but at least the Olympic Stadium can be taken apart quite easily and some of the materials re-used. The preparation of the land, the approach roads, the car parking and the drainage all have continuing value, as does the podium on which it was constructed.
However, it seems that former Olympics minister Tessa Jowell chose to ignore advice that there was no sustainable legacy from an athletics stadium. It could, of course, have been built differently with a retractable lower tier over the track. as at the Stade de France.
If I was a West Ham fan, I would be concerned about the atmosphere in a basically unmodified stadium. Hertha Berlin finds there is little atmosphere (or perhaps the wrong kind) at Berlin's Olympic Stadium, while Espanyol have vacated Barcelona's Olympic Stadium.
Spurs have a plan to deal with the Olympic Stadium, while the local planning authority, Bromley, is backing their plan to refurbish the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. It won;t be cheap as the site has sufferered from neglect and there is asbestos in the swimming pool.
The London Borough of Bromley don't think that Crystal Palace FC have the necessary money to move there. There are also parking and crowd control issues, as well as opposition from local residents. Croydon Council also wants professional football to stay in their borough.
Mexico Olympic Stadium
I am a supporter of Mexican Club Pumas who belong to UNAM Mexico National University, Pumas plays at the Olympic Stadium of the 68 games. Is a 70,000 seater stadium which currently is part of the University Campus which was designated World Heritage Site by UNESCo in 2007. Pumas' supporters are known as the best in Mexico and the Estadio Olimpico is one of the hardest grounds for visiting teams. Nevertheless when we play at Estadio Azteca the atmosphere is much better than in our own stadium even if we play as a visiting team. It is true that the Azteca is a 105,000 stadium and about 30,000 Pumas fans go there to away games. I've been at important games in the Olympic Stadium such as Finals but I haven't heard an atmosphere as the one in last december in the Estadio Azteca, even with a Pumas support of 30,000 people.