History
The Velodrom, Max-Schmeling-Halle and the swimming and diving pool Europasportpark (SSE) where planned as part of Berlin's bid for the Olympic Games for the year 2000. However, the Olympic Committee decided in favor of Sydney as the venue for the 2000 Summer Olympics. As a result, the construction concepts for the Max-Schmeling-Halle and the Velodrom had to be expanded during the construction phase to include the aspect of multifunctionality so that they could be used as multipurpose arenas.
The Velodrom celebrated its premiere on January 23, 1997, with the opening day of the 86th Berlin Six-Day Race. The final completion and official handover to the Berlin Senate took place in September 1997.
Architecture
The Velodrom is located in the middle of the Europa-Sportpark in the Prenzlauer Berg district near the city center. It has a maximum capacity of 12,000 visitors.
Its trademark is its circular shape and underground embedment. The building's interior is characterized primarily by a massive steel roof structure in the form of a circular "spoke wheel." This self-supporting design is unique in Europe and, with a diameter of 142 meters, is also considered its largest. The load capacity of the steel roof structure is 50 tons in total and up to one ton per node.
