Overnight remodelling, an Aussie-perfected art

Add as a preferred source on Google

Sydney: Stadium Australia, the glittering centre-piece of the Sydney Olympics, will be transformed overnight on Friday from an athletics to a soccer venue for the final of the men's competition between Spain and Cameroon.

An army of volunteers will work through the night to remove all the paraphernalia of an athletics meeting then cut the grass on the in-field, mark out the pitch and erect the goals in time for the match which kicks off at noon.

Walter Sieber, FIFA's soccer co-ordinator in Sydney said the whole process should be completed by early on Saturday morning.

"I will be at the stadium by seven in the morning to make sure all the measurements are correct and that the grass has been cut short enough and that everything else is in order.

"We will start work as soon as the final athletics event is finished on Friday night and we should be 'ok'. Depending on the equipment it should take a hour or two to cut the pitch and a couple of hours to mark the pitch out."

Sieber shares the delight of all FIFA officials that the final is being staged in the main Olympic stadium.

"FIFA was very disappointed four years ago when no football games at all were played in Atlanta and the final was held in Athens, Georgia.

"Soccer has always been a key part of the Olympics - in 1976 I was involved with the competition and 10 matches were played in Montreal.

"After missing out four years ago, it is great the final is back in the main arena."

Once the football is over - which could be as late as three in the afternoon if it went to extra time and penalties prior to the medal ceremony, the volunteers will be back in action again.

They will remove the goals and erase the markings of the pitch in time for the start of the women's javelin final, one of nine medals to be decided on the last major day of competition at the stadium before the end of the men's marathon and the closing ceremony are staged there on Sunday.

The women's third and fourth place match and the women's final between the United States and Norway will be played at the Sydney Football Stadium on Thursday. The men's play-off between States will be played at the SFS on Friday.



(c) Reuters Limited.