VENUES

Staging an Olympics requires grand vision, and Sydney’s Olympic Park is one such vision. The Games’ main venue, which will stage 18 events, is built on land that in the last 150 years had been used as a race course, arms depot, slaughterhouse, brickworks and garbage dump.

But with enlightened thinking--including input from the environmental group Greenpeace--the “Homebush” site has been transformed from toxic to tranquil. The effort has earned these Olympics the nickname Green Games,” thanks to a design process based on the three Rs--Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

Water conservation and reclamation, solar power, use of recycled materials and environmentally sustainable design have all contributed to create state-of-the-art recreational facilities that will be a lasting legacy for Australia.

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Sources: Olympic Architecture 2000: Building Sydney; Sydney Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games