The Olympic Stadium (French: Stade Olympique de Montréal) is a multi-purpose stadium in Canada, located in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec. Built in the mid-1970s as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics, it is nicknamed "The Big O," a reference to both its name and to the doughnut-shape of the permanent component of the stadium's roof. "The Big Owe" name has also been used to reference the astronomical cost of the stadium and the 1976 Olympics as a whole.
The stadium is the largest by seating capacity in Canada. After the Olympics, artificial turf was installed and it became the home of Montreal's professional baseball and football teams. The Alouettes of the CFL moved their regular season games to a smaller venue in 1998, but use Olympic Stadium for playoff and Grey Cup games. Following the 2004 baseball season, the Expos relocated to Washington, D.C., leaving the stadium without a main tenant, and with a history of financial and structural problems, it is largely seen as a white elephant.
The stadium currently serves as a multipurpose facility for special events (e.g. concerts, trade shows) with a seating capacity of 65,255. The Impact of Major League Soccer (MLS) use the venue on occasion, when larger capacity is needed or when the weather restricts outdoor play in the spring months.
Incorporated into the north base of the stadium is the Montreal Tower, the world's tallest inclined tower at 175 metres (574 ft). The stadium and Olympic Park grounds border Maisonneuve Park, which includes the Montreal Botanical Garden, adjacent to the west across Rue Sherbrooke (Route 138).
History
Background and architecture
The stadium was designed by French architect Roger Taillibert to be a very elaborate facility featuring a retractable roof,[1] the design of the stadium resembles to the Osaka 1970 World Expo Australian pavilion which was to be opened and closed by a huge 175-metre (574 ft) tower – the tallest inclined structure in the world, and the sixth tallest structure in Montreal.
The Olympic swimming pool is located under this tower. An Olympic velodrome (since converted to the Montreal Biodome, an indoor nature museum) was situated at the base of the tower in a building similar in design to the swimming pool.
The building was built as the main stadium for the 1976 Summer Olympic Games. The stadium was host to various events including the opening and closing ceremonies, athletics, football finals, and the team jumping equestrian events.
The building's design is cited as a masterpiece of Organic Modern architecture. Taillibert based the building on plant and animal forms, aiming to include vertebral structures with sinewy or tentacles, while still following the basic plans of Modern architecture.