16 Mar 2018
Has the Greek government found a buyer for Athens Olympic Park?
BY Tom Walker
The Athens Olympic Park could get a new lease of life, if plans by Greek businessman Dimitris Giannakopoulos are given the green light.
Giannokopoulos, a pharmaceutical entrepreneur who currently owns the Panathinaikos basketball club, has tabled a bid to buy the Panathinaikos football club – which is currently owned by Panathinaiki Alliance, a fan group which took over the club in 2012.
What makes the deal significant is that, according to press reports in Greece, the deal will only be allowed if Giannakopoulos also takes over the Athens Olympic Park (OAKA) in its entirety.
Some of the park’s facilities and venues, which hosted the Athens Olympic Games in 2004, are still in use – such as the Nikos Galis Olympic Indoor Hall, where the Panathinaikos basketball team plays its home games.
Many of the park’s facilities have fallen into disrepair, however, and the complex is among the state assets the Greek government has lined up for privatisation.
Giannakopoulos has revealed detailed plans for the park, which would include demolishing the basketball venue to construct a new one, as well as rebuilding the dilapidated Olympic Stadium – the main venue of the 2004 Games.
The stadium, which was designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava for the Games, would be radically re-designed – with only the Calatrava-designed roof to be spared.
According to Greek newspaper Kathimerini, the acquisition of the park would be part-funded by an international hotel group – which plans to open a hotel at the site – and could be agreed as soon as April 2018.
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