Germany’s capital Berlin has officially submitted its bid to host the Olympic Games in 2036 to mark the 100th anniversary since the city staged the event under Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime.
Speaking at a press conference, Berlin’s Mayor Kai Wegner said the city would use the flagship event to highlight its transformation over the intervening years.
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He said: “No matter where they [the Olympic Games] take place, the 2036 games will bring the Nazi Olympic Games from 1936 back into focus … [hosting the 2036 games] would show a city which has changed in the past 100 years.
“No longer do we stand for exclusion and hate, but instead are a colorful, diverse metropolis which is open to the world.”
Berlin’s Sports Minister, Iris Spranger, said the city wanted to organize a sustainable event using existing sports facilities, including the Olympiastadion, which was originally built for the 1936 games, but now serves as the home stadium of German soccer team Hertha Berlin.
Along with the historically significant 2036 edition, the city said it would also be open to hosting the Olympics in 2040 or 2044.
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By GlobalDataThe proposed project, named Berlin+, involves a partnership with four other German states, including Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony, and Schleswig-Holstein, and would see events held across Germany’s north and east regions, similar to the model of Paris 2024.
Specifically, beach volleyball would take place next to Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate in the center of the city, while skateboarding would be staged at the abandoned Tempelhof airport, which is already used by skateboarders.
Sailing events, meanwhile, would be held on Germany’s Baltic Sea coast in Kiel or Rostock, and aquatic sports are being considered in Grunau, the riverside town that staged Olympic events in 1936.
Berlin’s bid comes up against fellow German bids from Munich, hosts of the 1972 Olympics, Hamburg, and a joint bid by cities in the Rhine-Ruhr region vying to host the flagship event.
The potential hosts have until May 31 to submit their concepts to the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), which will then review and decide which bid will be submitted to the International Olympic Committee by autumn 2026.
Germany last hosted the Olympic Games in 1972 in Munich, with several attempts to bring the event back, including Berlin’s 2000, Leipzig’s 2012, Munich’s 2022, and Hamburg’s 2024 proposals, all stopped by public referendums.
A citizens’ initiative called ‘NOlympia Berlin’ has already announced its intention to collect signatures to oppose the city’s bid.
The 2028 Olympic Games are being staged in Los Angeles (the US), while Brisbane (Australia) will host the event four years later.
The IOC’s host rotation rules between continents mean that after Australia, a return to Europe is likely for the 2036 games.
Berlin’s bid comes shortly after the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, voiced his support for the city to bid for the 2040 Olympic Games as part of a plan to make the city the world’s sporting capital.
