Greece inspects swaying Olympic Stadium

ATHENS: Greek authorities were combing the Olympic Stadium in Athens on Thursday ( Friday in Manila) after UEFA expressed concern following reports of the stadium swaying during a recent Champions League match.

Deputy Minister of Culture and Sports Giorgos Vasiliadis ordered the investigation after UEFA informed stadium officials of a video circulated on social media last week which showed the upper deck of the venue moving around during Bayern Munich’s 2- 0 win over AEK Athens last month.

“We do not think there is cause for concern, but that will not prevent us from taking every initiative to fully protect the spectators,” Vasiliadis told reporters.

“I recommend calmness as all the necessary moves will be made. We will wait for the technical findings and will determine what to do next. There is no particular cause for concern at this stage.”

The deputy minister said the 70,000-seat stadium, build in 1982, “has the best technical specifications” and was refurbished in 2004 for the Athens Olympic Games.

“Every seven years it passes through a special committee examination. The phenomenon of oscillation is frequent in the stadium as with any stadium with upper decks. But we will do what it takes to be 100 percent sure that the facility is absolutely safe,” Vasiliadis said.