Page 145 - Olympism in Socialism

summer of 1979 during the 7th Spartakiad of
Soviet Peoples’ Games, included the Central Army
football and athletics complex, and the archery
grounds and the cycling track in Krylatskoye. All
these facilities were favorably appraised by
experts, who agreed that they were up to Olympic
standards.
Many of the new Olympic facilities are of
unique architectural conception and technical
design. For instance, the Olympisky Stadium (it
is built near Peace Avenue) will present 13 sports
events, including association and rugby football,
hockey, cycling, track-and-field items, and
wrestling. In a matter of minutes, a sound-proof
partition, built of light metal, will divide the arena
(120 x 86 m) into two separate Olympic playing
areas (one for boxing, to be watched by 18,000
people, and the other for basketball; to be
followed by 16,000 onlookers).
The Olympic Village is ready to welcome the
guests. The Olympic Village, in fact, is an
autonomous township with eighteen 16-storey
apartment buildings, a stadium, three all-
purpose gymnasiums, three water-pools, a
cultural centre, a restaurant, cafes, bars, a
community centre — in short, with everything
necessary for the comfort and recreation of
national sports delegations. The cultural centre of
the village has special premises for believers:
Moslems, Buddhists and Christians.
Interest in the Moscow Games is growing from
day to day. Bookshops in many countries are
already offering books on the Soviet capital and
the 1980 Olympics. The whole world now knows
what the emblem of the Games of the 22nd
Olympiad looks like — running lanes forming the
silhouette of a high-rise building crowned with a
five-pointed star. Its designer is Vladimir

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