Russia (then the Soviet Union) hosted its first Olympics in 1980. Some of the Olympic events were held in Tallinn (Estonia), Kiev (Ukraine), Leningrad and Minsk (Belarus), although Moscow was certainly the capital city of the Games. Nearly 80 facilities were built or renovated to accommodate the sports events and participating athletes, journalists and visitors. All of them are widely used even to this day.
The main arena for the 22nd Summer Olympics was the Lenin Central Stadium close to Moscow’s Vorobyovy Gory Hills, now called the Luzhniki Olympic Complex.
The opening and closing ceremonies of the Games took place in the Grand Sports Arena of the Luzhniki complex. It was from here that Misha the Olympic mascot took to the skies. Track-and-field events, the equestrian contests, and the final of the football tournament were all held here.
The Luzhniki complex is being renovated now to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Another 1980 Olympic facility that is now being renovated is the Dynamo Stadium. Football matches were played here during the Olympics, while field hockey games took place in the stadium’s Small Arena.
The Dynamo Stadium was closed for reconstruction in 2008. The Grand Arena will retain its historic frame but the interior will be modernized and seating capacity increased to 45,000. The stadium’s designated zones will be constructed to meet FIFA’s technical requirements and recommendations.
One of the largest indoor arenas built for the 1980 Games was the Olympic Sports Complex in central Moscow. It consists of a central arena seating 35,000 spectators, several swimming pools and other sports arenas. In 1980, it hosted the Olympic basketball, boxing, swimming and diving competitions.
A range of Russian national teams now train at the Olympic Sports Complex, which is also open to the public. The main arena is also used for major entertainment events, including the finals of the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest.
The rowing competitions of the 1980 Olympic Games were held at the Krylatskoye Rowing Lake. It was built originally for the 1973 European Rowing Championships.
A large sports complex built at Krylatskoye for the 1980 Olympics comprises sports arenas, technical areas, a cycle track, a velodrome and an archery field.
In the past 20 years, 200 world and European records have been broken at the Krylatskoye Velodrome, which is considered one of the best in the world.
Europe’s largest urban equestrian center was built for the 1980 Olympics in the Bitsevsky Park in southwestern Moscow.
The Bitsevsky Equestrian Center regularly hosts competitions in show jumping, dressage and vaulting.
The handball tournament for the 1980 Olympic Games took place at the Sokolniki Ice Palace, which opened in 1956. Renovations for the Olympics included construction of a five-storey building within the palace, with a training hall, changing rooms for athletes, areas for coaches, a press center, offices, bars, a restaurant and a sporting goods store. The Sokolniki Sports Center also has two tennis courts, a synthetic ice hockey training rink, and indoor handball and five-a-side football halls.
The all-purpose CSKA Sports Center was built in 1979. The Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling contests were held in the track-and-field section of the complex, while the fencers competed in the football arena.
The CSKA Sports Center is now the home stadium for both the CSKA basketball and indoor football teams.
Preparations for the 1980 Olympics required construction not only of sports facilities but also of accommodation for visiting spectators. Several hotels were built specially for them, including the Izmailovo Hotel close to Moscow’s Izmailovo Park, which is listed as the largest hotel in Europe in the Guinness Book of Records. The complex’s five buildings have approximately 5,000 rooms capable of housing up to 10,000 guests.
The Izmailovo Hotel Complex was built within four years.
The Olympic Village in Michurinsky Prospekt consists of 16 high-rise residential blocks with large courtyards, training facilities, dancing and concert halls and leisure areas.
After the Olympics, 14,500 families moved into the Olympic Village.
The 25-storey Cosmos Hotel was also built for the 1980 Olympics.
The Cosmos Hotel is located on Prospekt Mira, one of the main streets in northeastern Moscow, 20 minutes’ drive from the city center. It stands across from the National Exhibition Center, where major exhibitions and festivals are held, and near to the Ostankino TV Tower.
Another Olympic facility is the 24-storey Salyut Hotel in southwestern Moscow.
The Main Press Center for accredited journalists at the 1980 Olympics was located at 4 Zubovsky Boulevard. Construction of the 30,000-square-meter building began in 1976.
The building is now home to RIA Novosti, the national host news agency and photo pool for the Sochi Winter Olympics.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the Sheremetyevo 2 terminal, which was built for the 1980 Olympics, was held on November 17, 1977. It replaced the old international air terminal.
Sheremetyevo 2 opened on May 6, 1980 and served more than 460,000 foreign passengers during the Olympic Games.
New buildings at the Ostankino TV Center housed the Olympic TV and Radio Broadcasting Complex (OTRK) and the Olympic Switching Center (OKTs) for the 1980 Games.
