Address | Aleja Korfantego 35, 40-005 |
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Location | Katowice, Poland |
Coordinates | 50°15′58″N19°01′31″E / 50.26611°N 19.02528°E |
Public transit | Katowice Spodek Katowice Rondo |
Owner | City of Katowice |
Operator | PTWP Event Center sp. z o.o. [1] |
Capacity | 11,036 |
Acreage | 29 473 m2 |
Surface | Versatile |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 1964 |
Built | 1964-1971 |
Opened | 9 May 1971 |
Renovated | 2011 [2] |
Expanded | 2009 [3] |
Construction cost | ~800 million zł |
Architect | Maciej Gintowt & Maciej Krasiński from Biuro Studiów i Projektów Typowych Budownictwa Przemysłowego (Warsaw) |
Structural engineer | Wacław Zalewski |
General contractor | Andrzej Żórawski |
Website | |
www |
Spodek is a multipurpose arena complex in Katowice, Poland, opened on 9 May 1971. Aside from the main dome, the complex includes a gym, an ice rink, a hotel and three large car parks. It was the largest indoor venue of its kind in Poland until it was surpassed by Tauron Arena in 2014.
The Spodek hosts many important cultural and business events. Music concerts are especially common non-sport events. It can hold around 11,500 people, although this number is in practice limited to 10,000 or even 8,000 due to stage set-ups obscuring the view.
Its Polish name refers to a flying saucer since its iconic shape resembles a UFO. Spodek is a major contribution to the cultural significance of Katowice in Poland, especially for the younger generations. It has also been used as an unofficial logo for the city on posters promoting redevelopment in Katowice. Moreover, Spodek is home to ice hockey clubs in the winter months.
The idea of building a large venue originated in 1955, while Katowice was temporarily renamed Stalinogród. A contest was held to select the best design. Initially, it was to be constructed on the outskirts of town, but the Voivodeship National Council decided it should be built near the city center. A mining waste dump site classified "2A" was chosen for construction.
The classification "2A" indicated medium mining damage with a possibility of local cave-ins. While excavating the foundations, the workers dug through coal instead of soil. Soon after construction began, rumors of design flaws in the new building spread, including the rumour that the dome would collapse when the scaffolding was removed. Because of this, in 1964, construction was halted for 18 months. Spodek's architects and chief engineers were present in the dome when the supports were dismantled as a statement against those rumors. Before opening the building to the public, as an endurance test, 3,500 soldiers marched throughout the hall; the vibration measurement was positive.
Architects Maciej Gintowt and Maciej Krasiński designed the Spodek to employ the principle of tensegrity, as one of the first major structures to do so. For the roof they used an inclined surface held in check by a system of cables holding up its circumference. [4]
The structural engineer who conceived the unique tensegrity roof and made it work was Wacław Zalewski. His innovative structures included Supersam, a supermarket in Warsaw with a roof made up of alternating arches and cables, many unique industrial roofs in Poland, two basketball arenas in Venezuela with hanging roofs, the structure of the National Museum of Art in Caracas, the Venezuelan Pavilion at the Seville's Expo in 1992, and several bridges and roofs in South Korea.
Katowice is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Katowice urban area. As of 2021, Katowice has an official population of 286,960, and a resident population estimate of around 315,000. Katowice is a central part of the Metropolis GZM, with a population of 2.3 million, and a part of a larger Upper Silesian-Moravian metropolitan area that extends into the Czech Republic and has a population of around 5 million people, making it one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the European Union..
Immobile Łuczniczka is a sport, show and fair arena in Bydgoszcz, Poland. In sport it is primarily used for volleyball and basketball, and also regularly hosts indoor track-and-field meetings.
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Andrea Gardini is an Italian professional volleyball coach and former player, a silver and bronze Olympic Games medallist, three–time World Champion, and four–time European Champion. Gardini was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2007. Gardini currently serves as head coach for the Polish PlusLiga team, Skra Bełchatów.
The Poland men's national volleyball team represents Poland in international volleyball competition. The team is directed by the Polish Volleyball Federation, the governing body for volleyball in Poland, which represents the country in international competitions and friendly matches.
The Stadion Narodowy im. Kazimierza Górskiego, known for sponsorship reasons as the PGE Narodowy since 2015, is a retractable roof football stadium located in Warsaw, Poland. It is used mostly for concerts and football matches and is the home stadium of Poland national football team.
Ergo Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena, that was opened in 2010. The boundary between two cities – Sopot and Gdańsk – runs through the very middle of the hall. The arena has a capacity of 11,409 people, for sports events and up to 15,000, with standing places, for concerts.
Milena Maria Radecka is a Polish volleyball player, a member of Poland women's national volleyball team and Polish club Impel Wrocław, a participant of the Olympic Games Beijing 2008, bronze medalist of European Championship 2009), Polish Champion.
The 2014 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship was held in Poland from 30 August to 21 September 2014. The tournament featured 24 teams to determine the world champions in men's volleyball. In addition to the host nation Poland, 23 teams qualified for the tournament by means of continental and regional competitions. The matches took place in seven venues across seven Polish cities, with the final being held at Spodek, Katowice.
Jakub Władysław Jarosz is a Polish professional volleyball player who plays as ano opposite spiker for GKS Katowice. He is a former member of the Poland national team, a participant in the Olympic Games London 2012, 2009 European Champion and the 2012 World League winner.
Wacław Piotr Zalewski was a Polish construction engineer and designer, creator of innovative buildings such as "Spodek" in Katowice, "Supersam" in Warsaw from the roof of the structure funikularnej, or train station in Katowice. He was Professor Emeritus of Structural Design at the School of Architecture of MIT.
Supersam was a modernist supermarket in Warsaw, at Mokotowski Square, built in 1962 and designed by Jerzy Hryniewiecki, Maciej Krasinski and Ewa Krasińska with structural engineer Wacław Zalewski. It was the first self-serve supermarket in the country and one of the greatest achievements of modernism in Poland. Supersam was demolished in 2006 and replaced by a new architectural complex built between 2013 and 2015.
Intel Extreme Masters Season IX was the ninth season of Intel Extreme Masters competitions organized by Electronic Sports League, and took place between July 2014 and March 2015. The season included five stops in different cities around the world acting as qualifiers before culminating in the World Championship in Katowice, Poland. The featured games were League of Legends by Riot Games and StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm, as well as one competition of Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, both by Blizzard Entertainment.
The SARP Honorary Award is one of the two most prominent and significant annual architectural prizes in Poland, and it's awarded by the Association of Polish Architects (SARP) in recognition of the outstanding lifetime achievements in the field of architecture. It has been acclaimed 'the most prestigious architecture award' by Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza and by Art & business: gazeta aukcyjna.
Intel Extreme Masters Season IX – World Championship Katowice, also known as IEM Season IX World Championship took place in 2015. Intel Extreme Masters World Championship was held in Katowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland from March 12 to March 15, 2015. The World Championship has sanctioned official events include events of Starcraft II and League of Legends. It was the final event of Intel Extreme Masters Season IX.
The Intel Extreme Masters Season X – World Championship or IEM Season X – Katowice was the world championship for the tenth season of the Intel Extreme Masters. It was held at the Spodek in Katowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland from March 2–6, 2016.
The Intel Extreme Masters Season 12 – World Championship or IEM Katowice 2018 was the world championship for the twelfth season of the Intel Extreme Masters. It was held at the Spodek in Katowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland from February 27–March 4, 2018. The event featured tournaments for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and StarCraft II.
The Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII – World Championship or IEM Katowice 2019 was the world championship for the thirteenth season of the Intel Extreme Masters. It was held at the Spodek in Katowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland from February 13–March 3, 2019. The event featured tournaments for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2, StarCraft II, and Fortnite: Battle Royale. In addition, the Counter-Strike tournament was the game's fourteenth Major Championship.
The 2026 European Women's Handball Championship bidding process entails the bids for the 2026 European Women's Handball Championship. The winners were originally Russia but it was taken away from them due to the war in Ukraine. The eventual winners were Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Turkey.
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Events and tenants | ||
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Preceded by | European Indoor Championships in Athletics Venue 1975 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | FIVB Volleyball World League Final Venue 2001 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | FIVB Volleyball World League Final Venue 2007 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | FIBA EuroBasket Final Venue 2009 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship Final Venue 2014 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship Final Venue 2022 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | European Women's Handball Championship Final Venue 2026 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by TBD TBD | World Women's Handball Championship Final Venue 2031 | Succeeded by TBD TBD |