Athletes at the 1932 Olympic Games will be Specially Housed.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 145, 20 June 1931, Page 17 (Supplement)

Athletes at the 1932 Olympic Games will be Specially Housed.

COMPLETE VILLAGE WILL BE BUILT .

Special Services for Nations' Competitors.

(Written for the “ Star ” by

J. C. M’KINNON.)

A TREMENDOUS TASK faces the organising committee of the Olympic Games, to he held in 1932 at Los Angeles, in the housing and feeding of the athletes from all countries who will be competing. A special village will be constructed, extending over half a square mile and consisting of between 600 and 800 new houses. It will thus he possible to centralise all special services required, simplify labour, and provide for special foods for

'['HE FIRST CONSIDERATION of the committee was that the competing athletes from all nations should hj adequately catered for. This has •ugaged their attention since the preparatory work was put in hand several years ago.

The Customary housing methods were investigated and a close study made of the relationship between the ordinary type of housing facilities and the numerous special needs of the athletes from the hygienic, psychological and sociological standpoints. The committee set about devising a plan that would assure, more than by any of the existing methods, the health and comfort of the athletes. Finally the committee came to the conclusion that it would ■undertake to specially construct an Olympic Village, consisting of between 600 and 800 houses, in which the athletes of all countries would be housed and fed. Intensive work commenced on the many phases of the village plan, involving the correct type of house, correct furniture, the correct arrangement for the individual kitchen and dining room for each nation, including a system that will enable the athletes to enjoy the training cuisine they are accustomed to at home, and the intricate system for bus transportation for the teams and the many other important arrangements and facilities. It is not obligatory on athletes attending to make use of the facilities at their disposal, but it obviously is in their own interests to do so. It is equally obvious that the village plan can be carried out only with the assurance that all the nations will accept it.

In centralising the Olympic groups in the village it is possible for the committee to centralise. also all of the many special services it desires to render to the athletes for their health and comfort, convenience and entertainment which would be impossible if the groups were decentralised. It will also be possible to simplify labour difficul-

ties and responsibilities of the national committees and the team managements. Cost is £IOO,OOO. The Olympic Village is costing approximately £IOO,OOO and this cost is based upon the principle of lower construction and operating costs for a large unit, as against the higher cost for a smaller unit. The total amount received from the participating nations at the quoted rate of two dollars a day per man will be less than half, of the cost to the committee, the difference representing the nett cost on the committee’s own budget for this one item of preparations for the games. As construction of the Olympic Village must start several months before the opening of the games it is clearly seen that the committee must have definite assurance from each nation participating in the games in order to build the village of exactly the size to meet fully the entire requirements. Up to the present moment the committee has received no indication from any nation that it will not accept the Olympic Village plan. Located on the highlands, fifteen minutes from Olympic Park, and twentyfive minutes from the business centre of the city, the Olympic Village overlooks the Pacific Ocean fifteen minutes to th*e westward. This makes the village location central to all of the training fields and gymnasiums and central to the stadiums and auditoriums where the events of the Olympic programme will be held. Administration. Administration of the village by the Organising Committee will be centred in a special executive administration building at the main entrance to the premises. Here will be centred an intercommunicating telephone system to the headquarters for each team, to the dining halls and to the central offices of the Organising Committee and

to all stadiums and practice fields; a : complete information bureau for the j athletes and officials, bulletin boards, banking facilities for money exchange, post office and all similar facilities for the convenience of the athletes and team managers. Athletes may have all mail addressed to them, while in Los Angeles, care of Olympic Village, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. The pictures of the houses shown in the illustrations are from photographs of demonstration houses that are already built, and present the exact design and types of the houses that will constitute the village. Their size is ten feet wide by twenty-four feet long. The beds are of a design to be specially manufactured for the occasion. One of the best known designers in the world will be responsible for them. The design selected is a box, spring-coil bed, with specially comfortable mattress. A special two-room house will be built for every four athletes. Each room will have two beds in it and the two rooms will be private from each other, if the occupants desire to close the connecting doors. Each house will be detached.

Dining Rooms and Kitchens. The building for dining rooms wil be approximately 1200 feet long. building will be constructed of sound proof material and dividing walls wil separate the kitchen and dining rooir of each team so that each will enjo\ its own exclusive or private arrange ments both in its kitchen and in its dining room. These rooms will varj in size according to the size of the

teams and will be strictly under the control of the team management. Each team will be required to furnish its own cook. Some of the countries have already indicated they will bring their chef to Los Angeles. Others will arrange through their attache in Los Angeles for the employment, at their own expense, of their cook. The organising committee will take no responsibility for the prepara-

tion of the food. However, all food supplies, all equipment and operating supplies and all necessary assistants or kitchen help for the kitchens and dining rooms will be furnished by the organising committee. Medical Service.

A complete Medical Service Department, without cost to the athletes, will be located in the village. This will be directly under the supervision of Dr Sven Lokrantz, the Medical Director of the Games, appointed by the Organising Committee. This medical service will be made available to the visiting athletes as a convenience and service to them and without responsibility by the Organising Committee.

An information bureau will be located in the village and at this bureau athletes and team managements will secure full information concerning the Games and Los Angeles and all other matters of interest to them. An adequate corps of interpreters will be present at all times.

It is planned by the committee to have a special arrangement in the vil-

[ lage for the entertainment of the athj letes. During the training jieriod } before the Gaines when, the team managers require training discipline for the athletes, entertainment will be prol vided each evening in the village between the dining hour and nine o’clock. The motion picture industry is cooperating with the Organising Committee, and each evening various motion picture celebrities will be the guests of the village and will present a programme. From the day the Games commence, the evening programme of entertainment in the village will consist of showing to the athletes the official Olympic moving pictures of the contests of the day before in the many stadiums and, in this way, the athletes will be able to follow all of the many events of the Games. Special excursions will be planned on those days when the Olympic programme will permit it for the athletes to see moving pictures being made in the great studios, as well as to see other points of interest in and near Los Angeles. Also, as the Pacific Ocean and the bathing beaches are only a few minutes from the village, a special private place will be provided for bathing in the ocean and buses will leave the village at regular intervals during the day to take athletes to the beach. Transportation. Buses under control of the committee will be definitely assigned to each team for its use during the training period, transporting the athletes to the training grounds and, during the period of the Games, transporting the athletes to and from the various Olympic stadiums. The rowing course, yachting course, and Riviera Country Club for the equestrian sports are all located approximately forty minutes from the Olympic village. Special buses will carry the participants in these sports from the village to their sports’ centre during the training period and during the period of competitions.

Training Facilities. Training fields will be assigned for each team immediately upon arrival in Los Angeles. Already sixteen complete fields, with running tracks and other equipments, have been arranged for. Hot and cold showers, towels and other supplies will be furnished at each field, and the committee will have an organisation at each place to render various services to the teams. Several large athletic clubs and gymnasiums and swimming pools also will be available for the athletes who require these special training accommodations. The committee will assign these facilities to the teams on a schedule that will permit each team ample time each day for privately and exclusively training its athletes. The cost for the housing, feeding and village bus transportation and other facilities and services within the Olympic Village will be two dollars per day per man. The representative in charge for each team will arrange with the manager at the village to pay this fee for the members of his team each week. Women Athletes. Women athletes will not be housed in the Olympic Village. At the University of Southern California, located within five minutes’ walking distance from the Olympic Park, special arrangements have been made for their accommodation and for their training. The living quarters for women at the University are large new brick buildings of most modern design, with private rooms off the hallways. Large social, or reception rooms for the comfort, service and entertainment of the athletes are located in these buildings. A large dining room and complete dining service are included. The establishments will be under the management of expert women, and dining service will be provided to meet as nearly as possible the training requirement* of each team.