VENUE EVALUATION REPORT OF ATHENS 2011 SPECIAL OLYMPICS WORLD
SUMMER GAMES
Venue’s name: BLANOS SPORTS PARK
1. HIGHLIGHTS
Bowling games of Special Olympics World Summer Games have taken place in Blanos Sports Park at Spata
(Pikermiou Avenue) from 25th of June till the 3rd of July 2011. Blanos Sports Park is a new center for sports and
amusement, extended in three floors. Twenty up-to-date synthetic lanes have been used to cover all the needs.
Blanos Sports Park is a private venue so dedicated areas of the 3 floors have been rented for the purpose of the
Games. Apart from the areas that have been rented, the venue was open for its customers so as to participate
in other activities that were offered in the venue such as Fun Park etc. So the main issue to resolve was the
handling of all these different client groups. This was accomplished by isolating all the necessary areas by
separate flows for the different client groups. Due to the fact that bowling centers are generally created not to
handle too many people, its necessary to have clear and directional flows so everyone knows the right
movements inside the venue. It’s also essential, if possible, to have different entrances for the different client
groups. In Blanos Sports Park we had 1 separate and dedicated entrance/ exit for the athletes and coaches, 1
different entrance for staff and 1 different entrance for ASF’s, volunteers, spectators.
Another highlight of the venue was the ice-skating area that has been used as the competition staging area,
the awards staging area, the sport equipment area and medical room. Due to the fact that the ice-skating area
was the main preparation room and a very significant one it has been designed in a way so as to be effective
and efficient. It was very important to keep the flows in the right order so as not to create delay in the
competition schedule. Also sport equipment storage area and competition staging area should be near to each
other.
Technology room was located next to VOC and has proven to be the right choice due to the fact that always
arise problems in printers, emails etc so you need the technician next to you, so as to provide quick solutions.
The main entrance should be clear from cars so as the constant flow of buses (athletes, volunteers etc) will not
be interrupted.
Most of the bowling centers are private venues so one key point is to establish a common understanding with
the venue owner so as to be clear that it’s for the benefit of 2 parties involved (Organizing Committee & Venue
Owner) to organize successful games.
Move in should be at least 15 days before competition. In Blanos we faced a network problem and we moved in
1 week before the games. This has put a lot of pressure in the venue team and especially in the sport team but
we managed to be ready on time.
Finally, we tried to establish a relationship with the City Council of Spata, the area where the Blanos Sports
Park is located. City Council has provided help in terms of local transportation and a mutual effective
relationship has been created.
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VENUE EVALUATION REPORT OF ATHENS 2011 SPECIAL OLYMPICS WORLD
SUMMER GAMES
2. VENUE MAJOR ISSUES & RECOMMENDATIONS
List all major issues encountered by your venue team during the Games and your recommendations on how to
resolve/avoid these issues
No Issue Description
1
Venue Team-Team spirit
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3.
Communication between FAs
Recommendation
The main difficulty in the Venue Team is to establish
a common understanding that all the parties
involved are working for the same goal. In our case
was to deliver high quality service to all our different
clients. So the main challenge is to make clear to
everyone in the venue team that although they
represent a different FA, the goals and the objectives
are the same and everyone should work under this
philosophy. It is essential that all Fas understand
that they are a member of the same team.
Before the Games, email is a convenient
communication way, Games Time though problems
are resolved by personal contact and by phone
MAJOR CROSSFUNCTIONAL ISSUES
List all (if any) major issues encountered between the FAs working in the venue team during the Games and/or
other issues observed during the ATHENS 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games
No Functional Area
1
Venue Staffing
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Volunteers
Issue Description
Venue Staffing was assigned to the Administration Coordinator of the Sport who was
in charge for this project. However the representatives of other FAs have been
involved to this process and this has been a great help for the Administration
Coordinator who has plenty of issues to resolve during Games Time.
It is essential to keep the volunteers involved and keep their interest up to date till
the end of the Games. Especially in venues that are far away form down town it is
very significant. In Blanos, after the end of the competition, we have given the
opportunity to the volunteers to play bowling. We have organized a mini-volunteers
bowling tournament and they enjoyed it a lot. Also during their shift or break
volunteers have taken part in activities along with the athletes entertainment FA
such as ‘Dancing with the Stars’ etc.
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