The 2004 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, and officially branded as Athens 2004, were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes compete, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team officials from 201 countries, with 301 medal events in 28 different sports. The 2004 Games marked the first time since the 1996 Summer Olympics that all countries with a National Olympic Committee were in attendance, and also marked the first time Athens hosted the Games since their first modern incarnation in 1896 as well as the return of the Olympic games to its birthplace. Athens became one of only four cities at the time to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games on two occasions. A new medal obverse was introduced at these Games, replacing the design by Giuseppe Cassioli that had been used since 1928. The new design features the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens rectifying the long-running mistake of using a depiction of the Roman Colosseum rather than a Greek venue.
Ellinikon International Airport, sometimes spelled Hellinikon, was an international airport that served Athens, Greece, for 63 years. Following its closure on 28 March 2001, it was replaced in service by the new Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos. The airport was located 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south of Athens, and just west of Glyfada. It was named after the village of Elliniko, now a suburb of Athens. The airport had an official capacity of 11 million passengers per year, but served 13.5 million passengers during its last year of operations. A large portion of the site was converted into a stadium and sports facilities for the 2004 Olympic Games.
Elliniko is a coastal municipality in the Attica region and a southern suburban town in the Athens agglomeration, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it is part of the municipality Elliniko-Argyroupoli, of which it is a municipal unit. Elliniko is known for the former Hellinikon Olympic Complex, a temporary sporting complex building on the grounds of the former Ellinikon International Airport used for the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2004 Summer Paralympics.
Fencing at the 2004 Summer Olympics took place at the Fencing Hall at the Hellinikon Olympic Complex. Ten gold medals were awarded in individual and team events, further divided into three styles of fencing: épée, foil and sabre.
The Hellinikon Olympic Complex is a closed, partially demolished sports complex, situated at Elliniko, a suburban town in the southern part of the Athens urban agglomeration, approximately 16 kilometres from the Olympic Village. It was built on the site of the former Hellinikon International Airport for the staging of the 2004 Summer Olympics and 2004 Summer Paralympics. It consists of five separate venues.
The Olympic Athletic Center of Athens Spiros Louis or OACA (OAKA)), is a sport facilities complex located at Marousi, in the north section of the city. The complex consists of five major venues as well as other supplementary sport facilities.
SUNEL Arena, also known as the Ano Liosia Olympic Hall, is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Ano Liosia, in the western section of Athens, Greece. Originally built to host martial arts events during the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics, the arena has since been adapted for various uses. In 2021, the arena became the home for AEK B.C., for their games in the Greek Basket League and the Basketball Champions League.
The Faliro Coastal Zone Olympic Sports Complex is a complex in the coastal zone of Athens, Greece. It consists of two indoor arenas and a beach volleyball stadium, and it hosted Handball, Taekwondo, and volleyball events at the 2004 Summer Olympics. The complex is located in Faliro, Attica.
The Peristeri Olympic Boxing Hall is an indoor arena that is located in Peristeri, west Athens. The hall was the site of the boxing events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The venue originally seated 8,400, though it had a public capacity of only 5,600 for the 2004 Olympics.
The Olympic Stadium of Athens "Spyros Louis" is a sports stadium in Marousi, in the north section of Athens, Greece. With a total capacity of 75,000, it is the largest sports venue in Greece. It is a part of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex (OAKA) and is named after the first modern Olympic marathon gold medalist in 1896, Spyros Louis. The stadium served as the main stadium during the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2004 Summer Paralympics, including the opening and closing ceremonies.It is the current home ground of Panathinaikos F.C.
The Olympic Indoor Hall of O.A.C.A. is a part of the Spyros Louis Olympic Athletic Center of Athens, was completed in 1994 and is the largest indoor venue in Greece. It was used for sporting events at the 2004 Summer Olympics. The venue is located in Marousi, in the northern section of Athens. During its construction, it was considered to be one of the biggest and most modern indoor sports arenas in all of Europe.
The Olympic Modern Pentathlon Centre was the site of the modern pentathlon events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The venue seats 2,500 for the swimming part of the competition, 5,000 for the riding and running parts each, and 3,000 for the fencing and shooting. Construction at the facility was completed on 30 May 2004 and it was officially opened exactly two months later.
The Neo Phaliron Velodrome was a velodrome and sports arena in the Neo Faliro District of Piraeus, Greece, used for the cycling events at the 1896 Summer Olympics held in Athens. The property was donated by the Athens-Piraeus train company to the Hellenic Olympic Committee. It became the home of two football clubs which expanded into more sports: Ethnikos Piraeus (1923) and Olympiacos CFP (1925).
The Hellinikon Olympic Indoor Arena was a multi-use sports indoor arena that was located in Elliniko, a suburban town in the southern part of the Athens urban agglomeration, Greece. It was a part of the Hellinikon Olympic Complex, and it was located adjacent to the Helliniko Fencing Hall. It was approximately 10 miles from the Athens Olympic Village. It was built on the site of the former Hellinikon International Airport for the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2004 Summer Paralympics.
The Faliro Sports Pavilion Arena, which is part of the Faliro Coastal Zone Olympic Complex, is an indoor arena in the suburban town of Palaio Faliro, Greece. It is nicknamed "The Little Peace And Friendship Stadium", due to its similarity in design and close proximity to the Peace and Friendship Stadium.
Hellinikon Stadium was a stadium located at the Hellinikon Olympic Complex in Hellinikon, Athens, located approximately 8 kilometres south of the center of Athens, near Glyfada on the Aegean Sea coast. Ethnikos Piraeus F.C. played its home matches there from 2007 to 2014.
The Hellinikon Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Centre is located in the Hellinicon Olympic Complex in Athens, Greece. The venue hosted the canoe slalom events for the 2004 Summer Olympics.
The Hellinikon Olympic Hockey Centre was the site of the field hockey events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Located in the Hellinikon Olympic Complex, the facility consists of two hockey fields. The larger stadium seats 7,200 fans – though only 5,200 seats were made publicly available during the Games, and the smaller stadium seats 2,100 spectators – though only 1,200 seats were made publicly available during the Games. The facility was completed on 29 February 2004 and officially opened on 11 August 2004, shortly before the beginning of the Games.
The Hellinikon Olympic Softball Stadium is a softball stadium located in the Hellinikon Olympic Complex in Athens. It hosted the softball competitions during the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. The venue consists of a main softball field of 4,800 seats - though only 3,400 seats were made publicly available during the games - and two warm-up fields nearby. Construction on the facility was completed on 29 February 2004, and it was officially opened on 30 July 2004.
Field hockey and ice hockey are not popular sports in Greece. Until recently, an organized championship did not exist and only amateur tournaments were organised by few fans of the sport. The establishment of hockey federations is relatively recent as well as the organisation of Panhellenic championships. However, a form of this game was played by ancient Greeks. A marble relief of 510 B.C., on display at the Archaeological Museum of Athens, depicts athletes that play a sport like hockey. In addition, the 2nd-century BC writer Plutarch refers to a sport like hockey with the name Keretizein (Κερητίζειν).
