In 1931, Berlin won the right to offer the athletes of the entire world an Olympic site for the games of 1936. The town threw itself into the construction of pharaonic structures. They would allow 4,000 selected athletes to compete, and rest, in the best possible conditions.
Five years to think big.
Meanwhile, the country had sold its soul to National Socialism. The new regime saw in these games the opportunity to demonstrate its power to the world. To succeed with a such project, it mobilised all available resources even though the country was in crisis. So, a 120,000-seat stadium was erected.
In their accommodation on the Wustermark site, west of Berlin, the competitors were well catered for. The term Olympic Village was not taken in vain because the 145 buildings constructed for the occasion formed an authentic urban space organised around sport and relaxation.
This mushrooming town was home to a specialised hospital, shops, cinema, theatre, library and aplethora of refreshment points. Lodgings were in individual rooms, each personalised and fitted with the most modern amenities. The sporting facilities were also planned so as to allow the athletes to train until the last minute.
The Games had 129 competitions, for which there were many entries. Demand was satisfied thanks to the many practice halls built within the village itself. A pool allowed even the swimmers to train and the others to relax before a sauna session!
The construction and the functioning of this architectural complex, in the shape of a horseshoe, were unde the responsibility of Wolfgang Fürstner. It could have been a dream come true but we know the rest of the story. Wolfgang Fürstner, who was Jewish stock, was dismissed from his post during the Games. He committed suicide two days later after they closed.
Three months later, the villlage was converted into a military school. After the war, it retained its martial air, now in the service of the Soviet forces, and then was gradually abandoned with the breakup of the Eastern bloc. Today, only a few sections have been restored.
The rest has returned to the mists of its ambiguous past...*
* Text and photos taken from the book "Forbidden Places: Exploring our abandoned heritage"
Peter, you are simply wrong. Please don't have any kids. Thanks! Regards - rest of humanity.
P.s great website!
I'm surprised they would have hired Furster in the first place, with so many great German architects available. One of the achievements of National Socialism was exposing the ectreme racism amongst Jews in Germany who, while playing a major role in causing Germany to lose WW I had largely taken over many areas in Germany thru ethnic nepostism. Jews have now done the same thing in the USA. In the USA Jews now completely dominate the USA's top universities, all founded by Christians and they were hugely represented out of proportion to their size in Germany's great universities, the leading universities in the world at the time, due to discriminating against the Germans that admitted them to their universities.
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