Pub. 5 2015 Issue 2

14 AT THE CENTER OF UTAH INDUSTRY P eople watch sports on tele- vision, either in a home or a restaurant or bar, but they also gather in stadiums that have been specifically built as the per - fect location for watching a game. It’s an excuse for eating good food, socializing with friends and family, and enjoying the opportunity to express community loyalty. Sometimes, in the middle of the excitement of a game, it’s easy to take for granted the enormous effort that went into creating the stadiums where every- thing takes place. Stadiums have been around since approximately 800 B.C., when it con - sisted of an elongated U-shaped track and a stone stand for spectators and judges, each with their own entrance. Olympia stadiums were large enough to accommodate 45,000 people. Romans improved on the idea when they created oval stadiums. An example of the Ro - man touch was the Circus Maximus, for example, which was built in 100 B.C. in what is now Rome and which could seat 200,000 people. • Modern stadiums started off mod- estly and were little more than a large field with enough seating for a large audience. Tiers were made of concrete, and sometimes they had a small roof that provided shade for the seats where the most important people sat. An example of this is the White City stadium, which no longer exists but which was used during the 1908 Games of London. • Equipped stadiums were built start - ing at the end of the 1950s in an effort to lure spectators away from the comforts of seeing a game at home by television. They had more roofs, more bathrooms, places to get food and drink, lights for games held at night, and were well-equipped for television broadcasting. • The commercial stadiums that fol- lowed had more of an emphasis on safety and comfort. Some included museums, tours, and restaurants, so that the stadium was really a public area for all kinds of activities. They were not limited just to sports any more. • The next two steps were the devel - opment of flexible stadiums, which can be quickly reconfigured for dif - ferent uses, and urban icons that are designed to draw crowds because of their high-quality architecture, their technological systems, and their ability to provide unique experiences to those who visit them. From an architectural point of view, building a stadium today is about a lot more than sports. Stadiums have to in- corporate the following: • A building that supports its purpose: Athletes and spectators both have Mining & Stadium Constr White City Stadium, host stadium of the 1908 London Olympics