The Velodrom (

velodrome A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement ...

) is an indoor

track cycling Track cycling is a Cycle sport, bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles. History Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its i ...

arena An arena is a large enclosed venue, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, Music, musical performances or Sport, sporting events. It comprises a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for specta ...

, in the

Prenzlauer Berg Prenzlauer Berg () is a Boroughs and localities of Berlin, locality of Berlin, forming the southerly and most urban district of the borough of Pankow. From its founding in 1920 until 2001, Prenzlauer Berg was a district of Berlin in its own right ...

locality of

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Holding up to 12,000 people, it was also Berlin's largest concert venue, until the opening of O2 World in 2008. It is part of a larger complex, which includes a swimming pool as well, built in the course of the unsuccessful Berlin application for the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

. This project is related to the

German reunification German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...

and the wish of a city, Berlin, about to become the capital, to be nominated for the Olympic Games. It replaced the former Werner-Seelenbinder-Halle, which was demolished in 1993. It mainly hosts indoor sporting events, trade shows and concerts.

Architecture

The building was designed by French architect Dominique Perrault who won an international

design competition A design competition or design contest is a competition in which an entity solicits design proposals from the public for a specified purpose. Architecture An architectural design competition solicits architects to submit design proposals for a b ...

in 1992 and was awarded the German Award of Architecture, second prize for the velodrome and the Olympic swimming pool. The site chosen is at the intersection of urban elements and of different networks. In order to resolve the conjunction of these two systems, the buildings which house the velodrome and the Olympic swimming pool vanish from sight. The idea was to create an orchard of apple trees with two buildings set into the ground, one round and the other rectangular, covered with a

wire gauze Wire gauze or wire mesh is a gauze woven of metal wire, or very fine, gauze-like wire netting. Wire gauze is placed on the support ring that is attached to the retort stand between a burner and glassware, or is placed on a tripod to support b ...

, which shimmer in the sunlight and appear to be stretches of water more than buildings. The project includes *A multi-use velodrome: cycling, athletics, tennis, equestrianism, sports education, and concerts; *A swimming pool: two Olympic pools, Olympic diving platform, pools for diving training, handicapped, children; *A multi-sport hall. The arena is famous for its steel roof construction – with a

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the centre of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest Chord (geometry), chord of the circle. Both definitions a ...

of 142 meters, it has Europe's largest steel roof.

Notable events

In 1998,

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

performed there during her The Velvet Rope Tour. In 1999 and 2020, it hosted the

UCI Track Cycling World Championships The UCI Track Cycling World Championships are the set of world championship events for the various disciplines and distances in track cycling. They are regulated by the Union Cycliste Internationale. Before 1900, they were administered by the UCI ...

and has been the site of the annual Six Days of Berlin since then. In 2001, 2004 and 2009,

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, drummer Christoph ...

performed a total of nine shows part of their Mutter Tour, Reise, Reise Tour and the Liebe ist für alle da Tour In 2002 and 2008,

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter, and actress. Frequently referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Princess of Pop", she has achieved recognition in both the music industry and fas ...

performed her Fever Tour and KylieX2008 tours. In 2004,

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

performed a sold-out show of The Onyx Hotel Tour. In 2007,

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...

performed Alive 2006/2007. In 2014, the Velodrom has been the site of 32nd European Aquatics Championships. In 2017, cycling European Track Championship took place. On June 12, 2022,

My Chemical Romance My Chemical Romance is an American Rock music, rock band from New Jersey. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, lead guitarist Ray Toro, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way. They are considered one of ...

performed at the arena as part of their Reunion Tour. On December 4, 2022,

Rosalía Rosalia Vila Tobella (born 25 September 1992), known mononymously as Rosalía (, ), is a Spanish Pop music, pop and flamenco singer. She has been described as an "atypical pop star" due to her genre-bending musical styles. After being enthral ...

performed a show from her Motomami World Tour. ESL hosted the Berlin Major for

DOTA 2 ''Dota 2'' is a 2013 multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game by Valve Corporation, Valve. The game is a sequel to ''Defense of the Ancients'' (''DotA''), a community-created Mod (video gaming), mod for Blizzard Entertainment's ''War ...

here on May 5-7, 2023. On September 25, 2024,

Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

performed a sold-out show from her What Happened to the Earth? tour.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Cycling in Berlin Indoor arenas in Germany Sports venues in Berlin Velodromes in Germany Cycle racing in Germany Buildings and structures in Pankow

Architecture

Notable events

See also

References

External links