2004 Athens Olympics
Identity
 Most
Olympic enthusiasts heard rumours and stories that the Olympic venues were far from finished and
that the Greeks were disorganised and way behind schedule to host the
2004 Games from 13-29th August, 2004.
About 6 months earlier I
had even heard the suggested that the Equestrian events may have
to come back to Sydney as Athenians had no way of completing the huge
infrastructure that is needed to conduct competition for all three
disciplines and house 300 + horses in a manner appropriate for the top
equines in the world. I even rang my media contact to
investigate the possibility of not making the trip Greece to cover the
equestrian events.
When I boarded the plane
in Melbourne, I was very open minded as to what I may find when I
arrived in Athens ... and certainly expected much less than the treat
that awaited.
For horse lovers, the
Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Centre is positively outstanding and
would equal the best facilities in the world. The only thing
missing are trees and the leafy ambiance that makes the European venues
so magical and appealing.
Markopoulo is an outer
area of Athens, about 30 kilometers from the centre of town and very a underdeveloped
mix of residential, light industrial and rural . The
dry Greek climate does nothing for the naturally occurring vegetation,
and the area has obviously had some quarrying take place as there are
some gaping chunks missing from the adjoining hills near the complex.
Someone suggested that perhaps the material was used
in the construction works at the equestrian centre!? The daily
taxi trip back to apartment was interrupted by the activities of a local
goat herder taking advantage of the grassy blocks around the equestrian
centre.
These pages will take
you on a 'camera's eye' view of the sites around the centre and will
help you to understand why everyone loved the Athens experience.
The Greeks were very proud to play host to the centennial anniversary
of the Olympic Games. It has meant a huge facelift for Athens and many of the city's services and facilities have
been greatly improved in readiness for the tens of thousands of visitors
who would not appreciate shabby surroundings, traffic jams and a poor public transport
system.
The Athens Olympic
Committee spared no expense to ensure that the anniversary Olympics
were memorable and that facilities would be up to the high
standard set by
other countries which have been the more recent hosts to the Games.
Sadly, most of the venues failed to attract good spectator crowds and this was bad for revenue raising and very bad for creating
the atmosphere that only a capacity crowd brings.
There is not a big
following for Equestrian sports in Greece and until now not one single
cross country course. A legacy to the 2004 Games is
that Greece
now has a world class cross country course, a huge and magnificent
indoor arena, a fantastic equestrian complex with 4 full size outdoor
manages all equipped with shelters and seating for trainers. A vast
training area (on the opposite side of the roadway) with
grassed area specifically for jumping horses - also with shelters for the
trainer/s forms a perfect base to build local equestrian sport to an international level.
I spoke to a number of
the keen volunteers about the future prospects of the equestrian centre and they are very hopeful
that the facility will be used to bring to Greece an ongoing
equestrian training complex and some incentive for the few top Greek
riders to train at home. I was told that there is no
performance horse breeding locally and that any good horses must be sourced from
other parts of Europe. The lack of good horses and the cost
of buying an import means that dressage, showjumping and eventing have
not been possible for ordinary Greeks. There is a huge opportunity to fill these gaps
and be part the early development of a more prominent Greek presence in
the world of horses.
Everything to make it
possible is now here at Markopoulo. A state of the art
veterinary complex fitted with the latest equipment. This was installed to
ensure that the Olympic horses had access to the very best veterinary
care - should they need it over the two weeks while the Games were in progress.
Of
course this facility remains to be used in the future.
In the short term, much
of the benefit will go to the adjoining race course and the horses that
are part of the very enthusiastic Greek interest in racing.
Huge cooling bays fitted
with misting fans were located at the end of the cross country
course and also in the stabling area. They made it possible to
quickly cool a heat affected or stressed horse, and the facility was
available to horses on a 24 hour a day basis.
I was so lucky to be in
the media room when the Media Manager Anna Kotsioy (pictured below
left) invited any of the
100 Equestrian journalists and 60 equestrian photographers if they
wanted to take a look around. I was out on assignment the day of
the 'official tour' and was very disappointed at the thought that I
would not be able to take some pictures for Cyberhorse. About 25 of us
put on our hiking shoes and set off on this fantastic adventure.
Above right - Lucia
Montanarella who is the Media Manager for the FEI and so capably
conducted the Press Conferences. Lucia speaks all of the main
languages and was able to translate the riders' comments for the many
media representatives who attended the sessions. She did a great
job.
Security at all of
the Olympic Games venues was as tight and thorough as modern day Airport
security. Every entrance to the complex was fitted with X-Ray
machines and the walk through metal detector device that picks up
watches, jewelry and coins in pockets.
The dressage final
attracted 3 Royals and it took 45 minutes to get through security.
I had to take my camera and computer out of their bags and show that
there were no hidden secret compartments where some security risk was
hidden. Even though the timing was sometimes inconvenient,
it was gratifying to know that it was rather unlikely that someone could
sneak through the blockage and blow us all up!
On the subject of
security ... the first few days of 'working it out' presented some
serious frustrations. I opted to stay just 15 minutes from the
venue with friends I met at the 2002 World Equestrian Games in Jerez, Spain. Sharon Kyrke-Smith from Dressage
International Magazine, Bob Langrish a prominent international Equine
photographer ... and veteran of 5 Olympics and the bubbly Seamour Rathor
the dressage correspondent
from the long running English equestrian magazine, Horse and Hound. We
had an apartment in Koropi and relished the thought of avoiding a 1 hour
plus, bus trip that was involved getting to and from the allocated
hotel to the competition venue, when we stayed in Jerez. Everyone that
took the media accommodation package found it a nightmare and very tiring on top of the huge demands that
already come with providing information to the folks back home.
Sharon Kyrke-Smith, Bob
Langrish and Seamour Raithor
Were great fun and provided a wealth of 'know how' - thanks guys.
Day 1 ... we marveled
at how simple it was to get a cab from our 'local' Koropi Platia
(square) and the travel arrangements were shaping up to be a 'doddle'!
Our delight was short lived as we were stopped on the outer boundary and
despite the persuasive powers of three media representatives flashing
their official accreditation and putting forward a very compelling
argument for making an exception. NO GO was the armed guard's response.
What we did not know, and soon learned
... was, prior to the Olympics, Greek Taxi drivers/owners had to apply for special 'Olympic' status. I am sure
about security and identity issues and when they were granted a
clearance the cab had an 'Olympic' sticker on the windscreen. This
did two things for the operator, firstly they could add a 3 Euro surcharge on
to
the fare, but more importantly, they were able to enter the venue
precincts and deliver passengers right up to the
security gates at the venue entrance. Without a sticker,
vehicles were stopped by armed guards at a security base about two
kilometers from the venue and could not proceed closer past this point.
Faced with a two
kilometer walk with heavy equipment in tow, was not promising to be a good first day
experience! Bless their lovely Greek hearts, the guard called for
a courtesy car and delivered us to the venue, with a stern warning, in
broken English, that we must get the cab with the sticker and
needless to say, we diligently heeded his warning.
The Media room and
support for Official Media was outstanding with great facilities and
information services that makes it possible for news services from all
over the world to deliver information from the Olympics in the spirit of
the Games - 'lets get together and have fun'!
There were photographer's
work stations and journalist's work stations with internet access and
other services to help with backup for the demanding job that everyone
had ahead of them for the next 16 days. Lockers were provided for the safe
keeping of equipment and their was a great spirit of camaraderie.
The Journalist's media
workroom from the entrance end ...
The same room, looking
back the other way.
Media Centre Reception
Area - the beautiful marble floors went
right through the two story building and made a very pleasant
environment.
The outside of the Media
Centre ... downstairs the press conference area,
upstairs the photographers workroom
Above - View to the Media
Building with my back to the competition arenas
This side of the building has the food hall downstairs and the
Journalist's work room upstairs.
Above - walking to the
competition arenas from the Media Centre
The scenery outside the Equestrian Centre.
Dressage Judge Stephen Clarke (GBR) in the attractive judges box at C
At the best vantage points the photographers were three deep.
The Showjumping arena by
night ...
The world's media went to
enormous lengths to bring you ... the ones at home ... the very best
coverage on TV, Video, Radio, Internet & Magazines
Here a cameraman adjusts his water camera to capture the action at the
water jump.
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Page
1 |
A General Overview
of the Equestrian Area |
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Page 2 |
Presentations with a Traditional Greek
touch. |
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Page 3 |
Indoor Arena, training and other facilities |
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Page 4 |
Some of the Aussies helpers & Riders |
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Page 5 |
Views to the Stables |
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Page 6
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Stables, facilities & some training pics. |
© Cyberhorse 2004 Berni Saunders
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