Saparmurat Turkmenbashy Olympic Stadium

Interior of the stadium during AIMAG 2017
Location	Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Capacity	45,000
Record attendance	30,000 (Turkmenistan v Hong Kong, 18 November 2007)[1]
Construction
Opened	2003
Renovated	2013–2017
Architect	AFL Architects / Arup
General contractor	Mensel JV Consulting & Contracting Inc.[2][3] Renovation by Polimeks.[4]
Tenants
Turkmenistan national football team[5]

Saparmurat Turkmenbashy Olympic Stadium (Turkmen: Saparmyrat Türkmenbaşy adyndaky Olimpiýa Stadiony) was a multi-purpose stadium in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, that stood on the site now occupied by the new Olympic Stadium, built between 2013 and 2017.^[6]

Overview

The stadium held 30,000 people and was built in 2003, named for Saparmurat Niyazov. In 2017, it hosted Asian Olympic Council’s Asian Indoor & Martial Arts games that included participation from Australia and wider Oceania.^[7] The wider Ashgabat Olympic Park also hosted the 2018 World Weightlifting Championships.

In 2007 the Turkmen government decided to reconstruct the stadium and to enlarge it. The new arena seats up to 45,000 people.^[8] The stadium closed in 2012, and was partially demolished in 2013 for redevelopment.^[6][9][10] The most prominent feature of the new renovations is head of an Ahal-Teke horse, which resembles the national emblem of the country.^[11]

Events

The stadium is mostly used for football matches by the Turkmen national football team, but also for musical performances by Turkmen pop stars such as Maral Ibragimova.^[12]

The reconstructed stadium was the site of the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, also called the 5th Asian Indoor Games. The opening and closing ceremonies for the games were held on 17 and 27 September 2017.^[13]