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Eerie images show abandoned Olympic venues frozen in time around the world

25 photos show Olympics venues months and years after their use

Published August 2, 2024 • Updated on August 2, 2024 at 1:20 pm

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Olympic host cities spend millions on infrastructure that in some cases gets unused years after medals are awarded and spectators have moved on to the next Olympics.

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The below photos show frozen-in-time moments at abandoned Olympic venues months and years after their use.

This photograph taken on February 19, 2024 shows the abandoned beach volleyball stadium at the Faliro Olympic coastal zone in Athens. Used sparingly in the last 20 years, the fate of Greece's 2004 Olympic venues is emblematic of the country's long-running failure to capitalise on the legacy of a Games that cost 8.5 billion euros (.1 billion) according to the Greek finance ministry. (Photo by Angelos TZORTZINIS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images) — This photograph taken on Feb. 19, 2024, shows the abandoned beach volleyball stadium at the Faliro Olympic coastal zone in Athens. Used sparingly in the last 20 years, the fate of Greece's 2004 Olympic venues is emblematic of the country's long-running failure to capitalize on the legacy of a Games that cost 8.5 billion euros ($9.1 billion) according to the Greek finance ministry. (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

The partially dismantled bobsleigh track which was damaged during past conflicts lies abandoned on Mount Trevevic, near Sarajevo on February 6, 2024, as Sarajevo begins marking the 40th anniversary of the XIV Winter Olympics. The track was built 40 years ago as one of the Olympic venues during Sarajevo's XIV Winter Olympics in 1984. The venue has never been used for official competition since. Four decades after Bosnia's capital Sarajevo hosted the Winter Olympics, residents remember the event with a mixture of pride and melancholy that marked one of the last unifying moments in Yugoslavia before war destroyed the country. Most of the Olympics infrastructure was destroyed during the war that raged from 1992 to 1995, with Bosnia Serb political leaders and fighters commandeering a hotel during the siege of Sarajevo that once hosted tourists at the games. The stunning reversal of the city's fortunes remains a bittersweet wound for residents with living memories of both the Olympics and the war that followed. (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP) (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images) — The partially dismantled bobsleigh track which was damaged during past conflicts lies abandoned on Mount Trevevic, near Sarajevo on Feb. 6, 2024, as Sarajevo begins marking the 40th anniversary of the XIV Winter Olympics. The track was built 40 years ago as one of the Olympic venues during Sarajevo's XIV Winter Olympics in 1984. The venue has never been used for official competition since. (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images)

A ski-jumping venue lies abandoned on Mount Igman, near Sarajevo, on February 7, 2024, as Sarajevo begins marking the 40th anniversary of the XIV Winter Olympics. Two ski jumping ramps (80 meters and 120 meters) were built 40 years ago as one of the Olympic venues during Sarajevo's XIV Winter Olympics in 1984. The venue has never been used for competition since. Four decades after Bosnia's capital Sarajevo hosted the Winter Olympics, residents remember the event with a mixture of pride and melancholy that marked one of the last unifying moments in Yugoslavia before war destroyed the country. Most of the Olympics infrastructure was destroyed during the war that raged from 1992 to 1995, with Bosnia Serb political leaders and fighters commandeering a hotel during the siege of Sarajevo that once hosted tourists at the games. The stunning reversal of the city's fortunes remains a bittersweet wound for residents with living memories of both the Olympics and the war that followed. (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP) (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images) — A ski-jumping venue lies abandoned on Mount Igman, near Sarajevo, on Feb. 7, 2024, as Sarajevo begins marking the 40th anniversary of the XIV Winter Olympics. Two ski jumping ramps (80 meters and 120 meters) were built 40 years ago as one of the Olympic venues during Sarajevo's XIV Winter Olympics in 1984. The venue has never been used for competition since. (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images)

This photograph taken on February 19, 2024 shows the interior of the abandoned beach volleyball stadium at the Faliro Olympic coastal zone in Athens. Used sparingly in the last 20 years, the fate of Greece's 2004 Olympic venues is emblematic of the country's long-running failure to capitalise on the legacy of a Games that cost 8.5 billion euros (.1 billion) according to the Greek finance ministry. (Photo by Angelos TZORTZINIS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images) — This photograph taken on Feb. 19, 2024, shows the interior of the abandoned beach volleyball stadium at the Faliro Olympic coastal zone in Athens. Used sparingly in the last 20 years, the fate of Greece's 2004 Olympic venues is emblematic of the country's long-running failure to capitalize on the legacy of a Games that cost 8.5 billion euros ($9.1 billion), according to the Greek finance ministry. (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

This photograph taken on February 19, 2024 shows the abandoned beach volleyball stadium at the Faliro Olympic coastal zone in Athens. Used sparingly in the last 20 years, the fate of Greece's 2004 Olympic venues is emblematic of the country's long-running failure to capitalise on the legacy of a Games that cost 8.5 billion euros (.1 billion) according to the Greek finance ministry. (Photo by Angelos TZORTZINIS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images) — This photograph taken on Feb. 19, 2024 shows the abandoned beach volleyball stadium at the Faliro Olympic coastal zone in Athens. (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

This photo taken on July 20, 2018 shows Huanhuan, one of five mascots for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, lying amongst trees behind an abandoned, never-completed mall in Beijing. - A decade after Beijing hosted the 2008 Olympics, its legacy remains unmistakable from the smallest alleyways in the Chinese capital to the country's growing clout abroad. For better or worse, the Games changed the face of Beijing: from the iconic Bird's Nest stadium to the countless blocks of ancient homes bulldozed in an Olympic building frenzy. (Photo by GREG BAKER / AFP) / TO GO WITH China-politics-Olympics-anniversary,FOCUS by Ben Dooley (Photo credit should read GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images) — This photo, taken on July 20, 2018, shows Huanhuan, one of five mascots for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, lying amongst trees behind an abandoned, never-completed mall in Beijing. (GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images)

This photo taken on July 20, 2018 shows Fu Niu Lele, the mascot for the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, lying amongst trees behind an abandoned, never-completed mall in Beijing. - A decade after Beijing hosted the 2008 Olympics, its legacy remains unmistakable from the smallest alleyways in the Chinese capital to the country's growing clout abroad. For better or worse, the Games changed the face of Beijing: from the iconic Bird's Nest stadium to the countless blocks of ancient homes bulldozed in an Olympic building frenzy. (Photo by GREG BAKER / AFP) / TO GO WITH China-politics-Olympics-anniversary,FOCUS by Ben Dooley (Photo credit should read GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images) — This photo taken on July 20, 2018, shows Fu Niu Lele, the mascot for the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, lying amongst trees behind an abandoned, never-completed mall in Beijing. (GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images)

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GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, GERMANY - AUGUST 11: The abandoned Historic Bobsleigh Track for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 on August 11, 2021 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The Bobsleigh track was constructed in 1910 and was renovated in 1933 before being used for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936. The track was demolished in 1966, but remnants of the track can be seen on sleigh rides near the lake. (Photo by Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images) — The abandoned Historic Bobsleigh Track for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 on Aug. 11, 2021, in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The Bobsleigh track was constructed in 1910 and was renovated in 1933 before being used for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936. The track was demolished in 1966, but remnants of the track can be seen on sleigh rides near the lake. (Photo by Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images)

GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, GERMANY - AUGUST 11: The abandoned Historic Bobsleigh Track for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 on August 11, 2021 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The Bobsleigh track was constructed in 1910 and was renovated in 1933 before being used for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936. The track was demolished in 1966, but remnants of the track can be seen on sleigh rides near the lake. (Photo by Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images) — The abandoned Historic Bobsleigh Track for the Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 on Aug. 11, 2021, in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. (Photo by Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images)

Abandoned Igman Olympic Jumps in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 14, 2015. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images) — Abandoned Igman Olympic jumps in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 14, 2015. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

TO GO WITH STORY BY RUSMIR SMAJILHODZIC - A picture taken on February 5, 2014 shows Sarajevo's abandoned Sarajevo's bob sleigh track near Sarajevo. Built and used as an Olympic venue during Sarajevo's 1984 Winter Olympic Games, the track was heavily damaged during Bosnia's 1992-95 war. It was never rebuilt and it's large concrete fragments remain standing as a memento of past and training ground for young generations of graffiti artists. AFP PHOTO ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP / ELVIS BARUKCIC (Photo credit should read ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images) — A picture taken on Feb. 5, 2014, shows Sarajevo's abandoned bob sleigh track. Built and used as an Olympic venue during Sarajevo's 1984 Winter Olympic Games, the track was heavily damaged during Bosnia's 1992-95 war. ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images

ATHENS, GREECE - JULY 31: General view of the former Olympic Village in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. Ten years ago the XXVIII Olympiad was held in Athens from the 13th - 29th August with the motto "Welcome Home". The cost of hosting the games was estimated to be approx 9 billion euros with the majority of sporting venues built specifically for the games. Due to Greece's economic frailties post Olympic Games there has been no further investment and the majority of the newly constructed stadiums now lie abandoned. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images) — General view of the former Olympic Village in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. Ten years earlier the XXVIII Olympiad was held in Athens with the motto "Welcome Home." (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images)

ATHENS, GREECE - JULY 31: General view of the Olympic Aquatic Center in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. Ten years ago the XXVIII Olympiad was held in Athens from the 13th - 29th August with the motto "Welcome Home". The cost of hosting the games was estimated to be approx 9 billion euros with the majority of sporting venues built specifically for the games. Due to Greece's economic frailties post Olympic Games there has been no further investment and the majority of the newly constructed stadiums now lie abandoned. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images) — General view of the Olympic Aquatic Center in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images)

ATHENS, GREECE - JULY 31: General view of the Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Center at the Helliniko Olympic complex in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. Ten years ago the XXVIII Olympiad was held in Athens from the 13th - 29th August with the motto "Welcome Home". The cost of hosting the games was estimated to be approx 9 billion euros with the majority of sporting venues built specifically for the games. Due to Greece's economic frailties post Olympic Games there has been no further investment and the majority of the newly constructed stadiums now lie abandoned. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images) — General view of the Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Center at the Helliniko Olympic complex in Athens, Greece. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images)

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - MAY 20: A view from the mostly abandoned Olympic Aquatics stadium at the Olympic Park on May 20, 2017 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In the nine months after the Olympic games, very few events have been organised in the Olympic Park venues. The Olympic Aquatics stadium was to be dismantled, but it continues abandoned with no obvious signs of dismantlement. In addition, numerous areas of standing water can be found inside and outside the venue in the former official and training pools, making them dengue and zika risk areas. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images) — A view from the mostly abandoned Olympic Aquatics stadium at the Olympic Park on May 20, 2017, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In the nine months after the Olympic games, very few events were organized in the Olympic Park venues. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

ELSTAL, GERMANY - MAY 17: A drawing of Russian revolutionary leader Vladimir Ilyich Lenin can be seen on the wall of the main amphitheatre in the abandoned Hindenburghaus facility where functions and cultural shows were staged at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021 in Elstal, Germany. A German real estate developer called Terraplan is constructing and renovating buildings on a large portion of the former Olympic Village site in what local authorities are hoping is the first phase of investor commitment to developing the entire site. Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympics the village later served as an infantry school for the Nazi-era Wehrmacht and a military hospital during World War II. After the war the Soviet Army took it over as a military base and also as a training facility for its own Olympic athletes. A number of the original buildings still stand at the site, including housing for athletes, a swim hall, a gym, other training facilities and a theatre. Located just west of Berlin, the site has finally become interesting to investors due to the rapid rise in value of the Berlin real estate market over the last decade. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images) — A drawing of Russian revolutionary leader Vladimir Ilyich Lenin can be seen on the wall of the main amphitheater in the abandoned Hindenburghaus facility where functions and cultural shows were staged at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021, in Elstal, Germany. Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympics, the village later served as an infantry school for the Nazi-era Wehrmacht and a military hospital during World War II. After the war the Soviet Army took it over as a military base and also as a training facility for its own Olympic athletes. A number of the original buildings still stand at the site, including housing for athletes, a swim hall, a gym, other training facilities and a theatre. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

ELSTAL, GERMANY - MAY 17: A swimming pool lies abandoned in the former swim hall at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021 in Elstal, Germany. A German real estate developer called Terraplan is constructing and renovating buildings on a large portion of the former Olympic Village site in what local authorities are hoping is the first phase of investor commitment to developing the entire site. Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympics the village later served as an infantry school for the Nazi-era Wehrmacht and a military hospital during World War II. After the war the Soviet Army took it over as a military base and also as a training facility for its own Olympic athletes. A number of the original buildings still stand at the site, including housing for athletes, a swim hall, a gym, other training facilities and a theatre. Located just west of Berlin, the site has finally become interesting to investors due to the rapid rise in value of the Berlin real estate market over the last decade. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images) — A swimming pool lies abandoned in the former swim hall at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021, in Elstal, Germany. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

ELSTAL, GERMANY - MAY 17: A swimming pool lies abandoned in the former swim hall at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021 in Elstal, Germany. A German real estate developer called Terraplan is constructing and renovating buildings on a large portion of the former Olympic Village site in what local authorities are hoping is the first phase of investor commitment to developing the entire site. Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympics the village later served as an infantry school for the Nazi-era Wehrmacht and a military hospital during World War II. After the war the Soviet Army took it over as a military base and also as a training facility for its own Olympic athletes. A number of the original buildings still stand at the site, including housing for athletes, a swim hall, a gym, other training facilities and a theatre. Located just west of Berlin, the site has finally become interesting to investors due to the rapid rise in value of the Berlin real estate market over the last decade. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images) — A swimming pool lies abandoned in the former swim hall at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021, in Elstal, Germany. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

ELSTAL, GERMANY - MAY 17: A gymnasium hall lies abandoned at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021 in Elstal, Germany. A German real estate developer called Terraplan is constructing and renovating buildings on a large portion of the former Olympic Village site in what local authorities are hoping is the first phase of investor commitment to developing the entire site. Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympics the village later served as an infantry school for the Nazi-era Wehrmacht and a military hospital during World War II. After the war the Soviet Army took it over as a military base and also as a training facility for its own Olympic athletes. A number of the original buildings still stand at the site, including housing for athletes, a swim hall, a gym, other training facilities and a theatre. Located just west of Berlin, the site has finally become interesting to investors due to the rapid rise in value of the Berlin real estate market over the last decade. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images) — A gymnasium hall lies abandoned at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021, in Elstal, Germany. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

(GERMANY OUT) Germany - Brandenburg - Elstal: Deserted houses for the athletes in the former Olympic Village (Olympic Games 1936 in Berlin). (Photo by Martin Sachse/ullstein bild via Getty Images) — Deserted houses for athletes in the former Olympic Village (Olympic Games 1936 in Berlin). (Photo by Martin Sachse/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

(GERMANY OUT) Germany - Brandenburg - Elstal: Deserted houses for the athletes in the former Olympic Village (Olympic Games 1936 in Berlin). A wasted bathroom at the "Jesse Owens House" (Photo by Montag/ullstein bild via Getty Images) — Deserted houses for the athletes in the former Olympic Village (Olympic Games 1936 in Berlin). A bathroom at the Jesse Owens House. (Photo by Montag/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

Abandoned Igman Olympic Jumps in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 14, 2015. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

ATHENS, GREECE - JULY 31: General view of the former Olympic Village in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. Ten years ago the XXVIII Olympiad was held in Athens from the 13th - 29th August with the motto "Welcome Home". The cost of hosting the games was estimated to be approx 9 billion euros with the majority of sporting venues built specifically for the games. Due to Greece's economic frailties post Olympic Games there has been no further investment and the majority of the newly constructed stadiums now lie abandoned. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images) — General view of the former Olympic Village in Athens, Greece on July 31, 2014. (Photo by Milos Bicanski/Getty Images)

ELSTAL, GERMANY - MAY 17: Inside view of the abandoned Hindenburghaus facility where functions and cultural shows were staged at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village on May 17, 2021 in Elstal, Germany. A German real estate developer called Terraplan is constructing and renovating buildings on a large portion of the former Olympic Village site in what local authorities are hoping is the first phase of investor commitment to developing the entire site. Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympics the village later served as an infantry school for the Nazi-era Wehrmacht and a military hospital during World War II. After the war the Soviet Army took it over as a military base and also as a training facility for its own Olympic athletes. A number of the original buildings still stand at the site, including housing for athletes, a swim hall, a gym, other training facilities and a theatre. Located just west of Berlin, the site has finally become interesting to investors due to the rapid rise in value of the Berlin real estate market over the last decade. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images) — Inside view of the abandoned Hindenburghaus facility where functions and cultural shows were staged at the site of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Village in Elstal, Germany. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

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