Vaya con Dios   »  Eurovision 2004  »  Venue of Eurovision Song Contest 2004. Mydonese Showland	Русский

Place of hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 - Mydonese Showland.

     Abdi Ipekçi Sports Hall at Istanbul will be place of hosting of  Eurovision Song Contest 2004. Sports Hall  has been constructed at the end of  80-s’, but modernized recently. It is capable to contain 15 000 persons in a venue hall, but presumably, has problems with acoustics.

     Mydonese Showland was one of  the most probable places of hosting of the Contest. The Organisation Generale des Amateurs d’Eurovision (OGAE) has place its choice on this venue. The Showland can contain about 3 500 persons at full loading. As a last resort, its capacity can be increased up to 5 500 persons. Also there are a lot of  free offstage space and many rooms for press in it. Acoustics of  the Showland is so good, that singers could perform without use a microphone. This Showland is located far from city centre, nearby from airport Atatürk and near from the Istanbul World Trade Centre, but there is a underground metro station nearby. One of the main requirements at hosting of  the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 was that nearby from a place of hosting should be not less than 2 000 places in hotels. This requirement has been easily executed because of arrangement of the Showland near the Istanbul World Trade Centre and presence about it set of smart hotels. By the way, David Kopperphild was the first person, who acted at this venue.

     In total, ten delegates from EBU, having met in Istanbul with officials from TRT, had viweb-sited set of potential places of hosting of the Contest. Major candidates were few places. It is Mydonese Showland, Istanbul Conference and Exhibition Centre, Abdi Ipekçi Sports Hall, Ataköy Olympic Hall, Sütlüce Cultural Centre and the Istanbul World Trade Centre. Each place of meeting had the some advantages.

     The Istanbul Conference and Exhibition Centre, also known as Lutfi Kirdar Center. It is located in heart of  the Istanbul business area, but it is possible to reach it by the underground, the bus or the taxi from city centre - it is about 500 meters from the underground station Taksim, which connected to new underground transport system of city. “ 2 000 persons in comfortable armchairs ” - it is capable to contain hall Anadolu. Also in it there is “ a complete set of technic equipments of service even for the most difficult performances ”. The main feature of this Centre - presence of 21 rooms for holding conferences, capacity from 60 up to 600 persons. The venue hall has oustanding acoustics, set of a place for hosting of accompanying events and equipments of service of press, including a huge hall which can serve as press-center. There are more than 6 000 rooms for visitors within the limits of distance of the pedestrian walk, including six five-stars hotels nearby.

     Dome-shaped Ataköy Olympic Hall with its 22 000 places has been only recently finished. It is considered as a possible place of hosting of  the Olympic Games 2008. This is the most modern venue from probable places of hosting the Contest.

     Management of the Sütlüce Cultural Centre has suggested to turkish TV use the Centre. The hall which is now in a stage of construction and will contain 12 000 persons at full loading, will be finished at the beginning of  2004. It is locared on coast of a bay the Gold Horn (it is located on the European side of  Istanbul in the southern end of  Bosporus). Earlier on a place of the Centre there was a slaughterhouse. The Centre occupies the area about 30 000 square meters. After end of construction the Centre will consist of a concert hall, theatre, a museum, library and several exhibition halls.It was hosting summer schools and courses of manufacturing handicrafts in the Centre, and besides it will be also a place of hosting of the international events. This project is financed basically by the turkish government and World Bank. It were spent about €270 millions on the Centre. The center of culture Sütlüce  will be a part of completely rejuvenation area of  Istanbul. The overall objective of the project of Protection of the Environment of the Gold Horn within the framework of which this Centre is under construction, was to restore former glory once awfully polluted industrial area of city port. This area will become the main cultural appeal of city, its oasis.

     The Istanbul World Trade Centre is a huge complex, which occupies 80 000 square meters. The complex includes two magnificent hostels, many shops, cinema, seven exhibition halls and a conference hall with 5 000 places.