Olympic Games Rio 2016 - Sports Venues

After the Games, as part of the Venue Use Agreement, Rio 2016 began repurposing or dismantling some of the venues in the Barra Olympic Park.

Olympic Games Rio 2016 - Sports Venues
© 2016 Getty Images

This is a long-term process and is currently ongoing. The Park was opened to the public in January 2017 with some  new elements including a Wall of Champions, new plazas, landscaping and sporting arenas.

  • Aquatic Stadium and training pools: built with public resources, these were intended as temporary facilities which would be disassembled and repurposed. The dismantling process is currently ongoing. The temporary swimming pools were reallocated to other sports facilities in Brazil, including Manaus; Salvador; and Guaratinguetá/São Paulo. Another pool has been transferred to the Army Physical Education School in Urca, Rio de Janeiro, a sport complex extensively used by National Federations and COB for training and preparation.

  • Handball: this temporary arena was built to be disassembled. It will be dismantled and used for the construction of four new schools in areas defined by the City Hall.

  • The training hockey pitches at a local university are now in use by students and clubs for local tournaments.

  • The canoe slalom venue hosted the Latin American championships in September.

  • Via Olimpica: privately financed and maintained by a private contractor, the roads in the Olympic Park linking the different sports venues are now open to the public.

  • Velodrome: a publicly-funded installation, this venue is now managed and maintained by the Ministry of Sport; it is being opened to the public.

  • Tennis Centre: a permanent sports venue, the centre staged a beach volleyball tournament in February 2017.

  • Maria Lenk Aquatic Stadium: built for the Pan American games, City Hall funded its transformation. Since then, the Brazilian Olympic Committee has maintained and managed the venue where it runs a “High Yield Athletes” programme. Today, some 160 athletes train in the venue.

  • Cariocas 1, 2 & 3 Arenas: funded using private resources, Arena 1 (basketball) and 2 (Olympic training centre) reverted to the Ministry of Sports in December 2016. Arena 3 now comes under City Hall and will become a public school with a strong emphasis on sport education.

  • Rio Olympic Arena: built for the Pan-American Games, this venue was transformed using private funds. It has been privately managed since the end of the Pan American Games. It will host training for the Brazilian artistic gymnastics team.

  • International Broadcasting Centre: a privately funded installation, the IBC reverted to private ownership immediately after the conclusion of the Games. The internal structures were dismantled and will be used by OBS in PyeongChang and Tokyo.

  • MPC: also funded with private resources, this installation reverted back to private ownership after the Games. It is believed that it will be used for office space, however, this is a private decision.