The European Championships are a good investment for Munich – Munich
The European Championships will run until next Sunday, but one big winner of the event is already certain: the Olympic Park. It was overrun at the opening ceremony, and more than 55,000 people wanted to be there. At the weekend, 24,000 onlookers lined the triathlon course, 18,000 wanted to see the final of the BMX freestylers, and the children’s and concert offers were also well attended. It is well known that the various stages that the park offers attract many people when the right program is offered. But now, five years later, the stadiums and the shaped landscape around them are still excellently suited for what they were originally designed for: for ambitious sports.
The backdrop has lost none of its fascination. The curved tent roof, the sparkling lake and the rolling hills do not look like they are from another time, on the contrary: filmed in high definition, they look like Instagram hotspots. They are classics in the best sense of the word. The European Championships show what magic can still emanate from this place. But they also show how little that has been seen in recent years. Since FC Bayern moved out in 2005, the great sport has rarely been a guest in the only Olympic areas. Abandoned by the beloved foosball players, it seemed as if the park had fallen into a mid-life crisis. Car races, wine fairs, mass baptisms, erotic fairs: the park was available for almost everything. In an effort to keep the city’s maintenance expenses within a tolerable range, those responsible take almost every opportunity to earn money.
Now the return has been successful. The European Championships are just the right present for a birthday. With 130 million euros shared by the federal, state and city governments, that wasn’t cheap. But a good party can also be a wise investment if it is invigorating. That could be the case with the Olympic Park. Nine European Championships at the same time cannot be held regularly, but the enthusiasm they arouse makes you want more sport. A new arena is currently being built on the site of the first cycling stadium for basketball and ice hockey professionals. It should be ready for occupancy in two years. It offers the next major development opportunity for the ensemble, which is also striving for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Preserving what has been created and still renewing itself: Many Munich institutions are faced with this challenge. Few have such good conditions for this as the Olympic Park.