Kadriorg Stadium

Last updated
Kadrioru staadion
Kadrioru stadium.jpg
Kadriorg Stadium
Former namesDünamo staadion
Location Tallinn, Estonia
Capacity 5,000
Record attendance15,000 (Tallinn vs Riga, 18 August 1942) [1]
Field size105 m × 66 m (344 ft × 217 ft) [2]
Surface Grass
Construction
Broke ground1923
Opened13 June 1926;97 years ago (1926-06-13) [3]
Renovated1936–1938, 1974, 1884–1986, 2000, 2011
ArchitectRenner (stadium complex)
Karl Burman (1926)
Elmar Lohk (1938)
Structural engineer August Komendant (1938)
Tenants
Estonia national football team (1926–1940, 1992–2000)
FC Flora (1990–2001)
FCI Levadia (2000–2018)
JK Tallinna Kalev (2020–present)

The Kadriorg Stadium (Estonian : Kadrioru staadion) is a multi-purpose stadium in Tallinn, Estonia. Opened in 1926, it is one of the oldest stadiums in Estonia. It is currently used mostly for track and field competitions, but also serves as a home ground for JK Tallinna Kalev. The stadium holds 5,000. [4] The Kadriorg Stadium is located about 2 km east of the city centre in the subdistrict of Kadriorg near the Kadriorg Palace. The address of the stadium is Roheline aas 24, 10150 Tallinn.

Contents

Kadriorg has been the national athletics stadium of the nation throughout its entire history and was the home ground of the Estonia national football team from its opening in 1926 until the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940, and again after the country's re-independence from 1992 until 2000, after which the team moved to A. Le Coq Arena. Throughout its history, the Kadriorg Stadium has at some point been the home ground for nearly all of the top-flight football teams of Tallinn, such as FC Flora, Levadia, Kalev, Nõmme Kalju, TJK Legion and TVMK.

Kadriorg Stadium has hosted the European Athletics U23 Championships in 2015 and 2021, as well as the European Athletics U20 Championships in 2011 and 2021. It was also one of the venues for the 2012 UEFA European U19 Championship.

History

The first wooden grandstand was initially built to be the stage for the 1923 Estonian Song Festival held at the same location and was later modified to become the 2,500-seat grandstand of the new Kadriorg Stadium Kadrioru staadion 1926-1934.jpg
The first wooden grandstand was initially built to be the stage for the 1923 Estonian Song Festival held at the same location and was later modified to become the 2,500-seat grandstand of the new Kadriorg Stadium

Kadriorg Stadium was opened on 13 June 1926, eight years after Estonia had become independent. The stadium's opening event was attended by 15,000 people and saw Estonia beat Lithuania 3–1 in football. The stadium complex was designed by German architect Renner and the first wooden grandstand by Estonian architect Karl Burman. [5] Upon completion, the stadium was inaugurated as the country's national stadium and was considered to be the finest of the Baltic states. [6]

Despite its grand look, the 2,500-capacity grandstand quickly proved to be too small to facilitate the growing number of spectators and underwent an expansion in 1934, before an inspection in 1935 found the wooden structure to be in need of immediate repairs as it was in danger of collapsing. [7]

A design competition for a new grandstand was held in the spring of 1936 and the project of Estonian architect Elmar Lohk was chosen, mainly due to his innovative solution to lead the spectators to their seats through passages from the back of the grandstand, unlike the then commonly used approach in Europe that often saw spectators enter the stand from the front. [6] The construction began in late 1936 and was finished in a year, by late 1937.

Kadriorg Stadium's roof was the largest cantilever concrete roof in the world after its completion in 1937 Kadrioru staadion 1937.jpg
Kadriorg Stadium's roof was the largest cantilever concrete roof in the world after its completion in 1937

With its freestanding concrete roof, the new grandstand was believed to be one of the most modern in Europe at the time and was seen as an outstanding achievement in the field of reinforced concrete structures. [8] The stadium was officially re-opened on 15 May 1938 with great celebration by the first president of Estonia Konstantin Päts. The opening event saw Estonia draw 1–1 with RC Strasbourg in front of 8,000 people. [9] A year later, World War II had reached Estonia and the country was occupied by the Soviet Union, after which Kadriorg Stadium was renamed as Dünamo staadion.

Soviet Union - USA - West Germany decathlon event (1974) NSV Liit - USA - Saksa FV kumnevoistluses Tallinnas Kadrioru staadionil 1974 (05).jpg
Soviet Union - USA - West Germany decathlon event (1974)

During the Soviet occupation, the stadium continued to be one of the primary sports venues of the region and hosted a number of international and Soviet wide athletics competitions, most notably the Soviet Union – USA – West Germany decathlon event in 1974 and the Soviet Union – East Germany athletics competition in 1986. The 1986 event also saw two athletics world records set in Kadriorg, when Yuriy Sedykh set a world record of 86.66 m in hammer throw and Heike Drechsler a world record of 7.45 m in women's long jump.

In 1992, the stadium hosted the first match of the Estonia national football team after the country's re-independence, when Estonia drew 1–1 with Slovenia. It was also the location of the infamous "One team in Tallinn" fixture between Estonia and Scotland, which was abandoned after three seconds when the home team refused to turn up, in protest at the game's kick-off time being brought forward several hours. [10] The national team's last match in Kadriorg took place on 3 September 2000 against Portugal, after which the team moved to A. Le Coq Arena.

In 2011, Kadriorg Stadium hosted the 21st European Athletics Junior Championships. The stadium was one of the venues for the 2012 UEFA European U19 Championship and hosted three group stage matches. In 2015, the stadium hosted the U23 European Athletics Championships. In 2021, Kadriorg hosted both U20 and U23 European Athletics Championships.

Future

For Kadriorg Stadium's 100th birthday in 2026, the City of Tallinn will renovate the complex for €20 million. [11] [12] The renovation will see the complete refurbishment of the sports field and the historic grandstand, as well as the construction of a new 1,600-seat stand on the opposite side of the field. Additionally, a new 1,000-seat football ground will be built behind the main stadium, next to the current athletics training field. The new football ground will also have its own administrative building that would be connected with the grandstand by a planned tunnel. The first works began in 2023, when floodlights were installed for the main stadium and its both training fields.

Grandstand

The current grandstand was built during Estonia's first period of independence Kadrioru staadion.JPG
The current grandstand was built during Estonia's first period of independence

Kadriorg Stadium's current grandstand was opened in 1938 and is an official cultural heritage monument. Designed by architect Elmar Lohk and famous engineer August Komendant, it was seen during its time as an outstanding achievement in the field of reinforced concrete structures and was mostly noted for its 12.8 m long and 51 m wide cantilever concrete roof, the largest in the world at the time. [6] The grandstand has also been brought out by world-famous architectural critic Kenneth Frampton as one of the most outstanding and historic concrete structures in Estonia. [13]

Athletics records

World records

The Kadriorg Stadium has seen three world records in athletics. The first two were set during the 1986 Soviet Union – East Germany athletics competition, where Yuriy Sedykh set a world record of 86.66 m in the hammer throw and Heike Drechsler a world record of 7.45 m in women's long jump. The stadium saw its third world record in 2006, when Tatyana Lysenko threw 77.80 m in women's hammer throw. [12]

Stadium records

Updated on 1 January 2024. [14]

Men

EventRecordAthleteNationalityDateRef
100 m 10.07 Jimmy Vicaut Flag of France.svg  France 22.07.2011
200 m 20.25 Jaysuma Saidy Ndure Flag of Norway.svg  Norway 22.07.2007
400 m 45.02 Ricky Petrucciani Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 10.07.2021
800 m 1:45.73 Curtis Robb Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom 09.06.1996
1000 m 2:24.10 Oleg Holdai Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 19.07.1996
1500 m 3:38.90 Jukka Keskisalo Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 25.08.2009
Mile 3:59.93 Nikolai Vedehin Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 25.08.2012
2000 m 5:14.4 Ain Mõnjam Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 20.08.1986
3000 m 7:52.46 James Getanda Flag of Kenya.svg  Kenya 30.07.2003
5000 m 13:20.16 Ali Kaya Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey 11.07.2015
10,000 m 27:53.38 Ali Kaya Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey 09.07.2015
20,000 m 1:03:00.8 Stepan Baidiuk Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 1975
110 m hurdles 13.31 Stanislavs Olijars Flag of Latvia.svg  Latvia 16.08.2005
400 m hurdles 48.04 Rasmus Mägi Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 30.07.2023
3000 m steeplechase 8:26.26 Nikolay Matyushenko Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 21.06.1986
High jump 2.36 Hennadiy Avdyeyenko Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 06.07.1988
Pole vault 5.85 Grigoriy Yegorov Flag of Kazakhstan.svg  Kazakhstan 05.07.1988
Long jump 8.46 Leonid Voloshin Flag of Russia.svg  Russia 05.07.1988
Triple jump 17.47 Aleksandr Kovalenko Flag of Belarus.svg  Belarus 07.07.1988
Shot put 22.60 Ulf Timmermann Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 21.06.1986
Discus throw 70.61 Virgilijus Alekna Flag of Lithuania.svg  Lithuania 16.09.2005
Hammer throw 86.66 (WR) Yuriy Sedykh Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 22.06.1986
Javelin throw 90.73 (NR) Vadims Vasiļevskis Flag of Latvia.svg  Latvia 22.07.2007
Decathlon 8628 Erki Nool Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 05.07.1998
10,000 m walk 40:43.73 Hagen Pohle Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 17.08.1977
20,000 m walk 1:29:29.4 Evgeni Semerdzhiev Flag of Bulgaria.svg  Bulgaria 17.08.1977
4 × 100 m relay 38.36 A. Yevgenyev, N. Yuschmanov, V. Muravyov, V. Bryzhin Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 21.06.1986
4 × 400 m relay 3:03.68 V. Krylov, V. Kocerjagins, V. Prosin, A. Kurochkin Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 22.06.1986

Women

EventRecordAthleteNationalityDateRef
100 m 11.08 Silke Gladisch Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 21.06.1986
200 m 22.13 Heike Drechsler Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 22.06.1986
400 m 49.76 Olga Vladykina Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 21.06.1986
800 m 1:57.98 Sigrun Wodars Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 22.06.1986
1000 m 2:45.3 Sirje Eichelmann Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 31.08.1988
1500 m 4:02.90 Heike Oehme Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 21.06.1986
Mile 4:36.36 Liina Tšernov Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 18.08.2017
2000 m 5:56.8 Sirje Eichelmann Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 07.09.1988
3000 m 8:36.00 Tetyana Samolenko Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 22.06.1986
5000 m 15:02.12 Svetlana Guskova Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 21.06.1986
10,000 m 32:18.69 Jip Vastenburg Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 10.07.2015
100 m hurdles 12.57 Cornelia Oschkenat Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 21.06.1986
400 m hurdles 54.28 Emma Zapletalová Flag of Slovakia.svg  Slovakia 10.07.2021
3000 m steeplechase 9:36.14 Tuğba Güvenç Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey 11.07.2015
High jump 2.00 Kajsa Bergqvist Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 10.07.2021
Yaroslava Mahuchikh Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine
Pole vault 4.57 Angelica Bengtsson Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 23.07.2011
Long jump 7.45 (WR) Heike Drechsler Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 21.06.1986
Triple jump 14.64 Mabel Gay Flag of Cuba.svg  Cuba 25.08.2009
Shot put 22.55 Natalya Lisovskaya Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 05.07.1988
Discus throw 72.12 Diana Sachse Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 21.06.1986
Hammer throw 77.80 (WR) Tatyana Lysenko Flag of Russia.svg  Russia 15.08.2006
Javelin throw 67.39 Maria Abakumova Flag of Russia.svg  Russia 25.08.2009
Heptathlon 6769 Carolina Klüft Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 04.07.2004
10 000 m walk 42:59.48 Elena Lashmanova Flag of Russia.svg  Russia 21.07.2011
4 × 100 m relay 42.70 E. Barbashina, M. Azarashvili, I.Slyusar, O. Zolotaryova Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 21.06.1986
4 × 400 m relay 3:23.25 R. Ludwigs, S. Busch, A. Hesselbarth, P. Müller Flag of East Germany.svg  East Germany 22.06.1986
80 m hurdles 10.9 Helgi Mägi Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 1968

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Schwede, Indrek (2021). "Jalgpalli positsioonist Eestis ja selle marginaliseerumise põhjustest Nõukogude anneksiooni perioodil". Tartu Ülikooli Kirjastus: 69.
  2. ↑ EOK – Spordirajatised — KADRIORU STAADION
  3. ↑ Kadrioru staadion – Ajalugu
  4. ↑ Info on homepage
  5. ↑ "Staadion!". Eesti Spordileht. 11 June 1926.
  6. 1 2 3 "Kadrioru staadion - Ajalugu - Ülevaade staadioni ehitusest". www.kadriorustaadion.ee.
  7. ↑ "Katusega tribüün Kadrioru staadionile". Päewaleht. 5 April 1936.
  8. ↑ "Kadrioru staadion – moodsamaid Euroopas". Postimees. 9 January 1938.
  9. ↑ Retro: Kadrioru staadioni tribüüni avamine, Youtube, retrieved 2023-01-13
  10. ↑ Shaw, Phil (10 October 1996). "Scotland await verdict after Estonian farce". The Independent. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "Kadriorg Stadium to get second full-size football pitch after renovations". ERR. 17 October 2023.
  12. 1 2 Schwede, Indrek (October 2023). "Kadrioru staadion sajanda juubeli eel: harjutusväljakust saab võistluspaik". Jalka.
  13. ↑ "Kadrioru staadionihoonet peetakse oluliseks arhitektuurimälestiseks". ERR (in Estonian). 23 October 2015.
  14. ↑ "Athletics records". kadriorustaadion.ee.

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