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Olivia Harris / Reuters
London's Olympic Village will accommodate up to 16,000 athletes and officials from more than 200 nations.
LONDON -- What will it be like for athletes like Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt as they eat, sleep and relax at London's $1.5-billion Olympic Village? Think somewhere between a college dorm and freshly-painted motel.
In the first of a series of "Olympic sleepovers" designed to road-test the facilities, msnbc.com was invited to spend the night in the vast complex.
The verdict? Apartments are light and airy but far from luxurious: Only some have en-suite bathrooms, even fewer have balconies and there are no kitchens as all cooking will be done in a 24-hour cafeteria that seats 5,000.
In shared sleeping spaces, beds are close together and most furniture is of the functional, self-assembly variety. (Spare a thought for workers who had to put together more than 9,000 cabinets and wardrobes.) Mattresses were chosen by a committee of athletes but are built for function rather than indulgence.
Alastair Jamieson for msnbc.com
Msnbc.com's bed in the Olympic Village. Which of the world's top athletes will occupy it next?
The pristine white walls and blackout curtains are livened by beanbags and chairs in the now-familiar bright neon colors of the London 2012 logo, and there are televisions with 28 channels including live feeds of all the Olympic events. Duvet covers bear the words "excellence, friendship and respect."
'Temptation'
All of the beds are single and walls are thin -- which may disappoint those hoping to burn off calories with the help of fellow competitors.
There's not much opportunity for mischief in the village's bar, either. Named after Shakespeare's Globe Theater, it offers 10 pool tables, a private cinema and a computer gaming area – but no alcohol. "Not all the competitors are of legal drinking age and, besides, you don’t want to put temptation in peoples' way," one official told msnbc.com.
More Olympic coverage: London hosts the Games
Up to 16,000 athletes and officials from more than 200 nations will take up residence later this month in the high-security compound. The vast complex includes more than 2.7 million square feet of living space and is adjacent to the Olympic Park in east London.
Inevitable teething troubles are being worked out, including a water system failure that left many without showers on Saturday.
Sleeping accommodation is spread across 11 residential blocks separated by orderly, tree-lined courtyards. Most athletes will share rooms in the apartments, which vary in size from one to five bedrooms. There's also a 13,000 square foot gym, a medical center and a dry cleaners.
But the most important facility is the cafeteria, which is housed in a temporary structure big enough to park 80 double-decker buses.
Alastair Jamieson for msnbc.com
Visitors play pool in The Globe - the "dry" bar in the Olympic Village.
Food is among the biggest concerns for organizers, who will need to serve as many as 60,000 meals a day. And these are no ordinary meals: Phelps alone consumes 12,000 calories a day. At the 2008 Beijing games he started each day with three fried egg sandwiches, a five-egg omelet, three slices of French toast with powdered sugar, three chocolate chip pancakes and two cups of coffee.
25,000 loaves of bread
By the end of the London Games, athletes will have tucked away an estimated total of 90 tons of seafood, 25,000 loaves of bread and 360 tons of fruit.
Serving stations are sorted by culinary tradition with Indian, Asian, Mediterranean and Afro-Caribbean dishes served at different counters along with a "Best of British" area with local favorites such as sausages, brown sauce and English mustard.
And yes, there's a McDonald's.
Sponsorship deals mean the only branded drinks available to athletes are those made by Coca-Cola, including Powerade and Abbey Well Water.
Halal and kosher meals are available - the kitchens expect a rush of demand at dusk after Ramadan begins on July 20 – and there’s a multi-faith prayer center manned by a team of 50 spiritual leaders from different religions.
Will it be enough to satisfy the most demanding competitors? Well, the food is tasty and nutritious.
"We've all lived in villages and had good experiences and bad experiences," British triple jump gold medalist and organizers' committee member Jonathan Edwards told Reuters. "It's a good night's sleep, the food that you want to eat, when you want to eat it and also the transport system."
But one aspect that appears to be ready is security. Uppermost in the minds of planners might be the Munich massacre – the killing of 11 Israeli competitors and coaches at the 1972 Olympics by terrorists who climbed over fences into the athletes' compound.
Despite being adjacent the main Olympic Park, the village is separated by metal fences topped with razor wire and a raft of additional airport-style security checks that include thorough searches of the interior of all vehicles. Some 1,500 security workers will guard the complex around the clock. Similar levels of security protect the woodchip-fueled power plant that supplies the entire Games site.
Alastair Jamieson for msnbc.com
Aiming for bronze: Msnbc.com's Alastair Jamieson wakes up sleepy after a night in the Olympic Village.
Although intense planning has gone into how the village will operate during the games, not all of it is purpose-built for the Olympics: After the closing ceremony, the accommodation blocks will be retrospectively fitted with kitchens and converted into 2,818 new homes, 1,379 of which will be government-subsidized for individuals or families who could not otherwise afford to live there.
'Not a five-star resort'
The Financial Times reported that the cost of the Village was initially met from the $15 billion public budget after planned private funding dried up in the credit crunch of 2009. However, about two-thirds of the cost was recouped when the housing was pre-sold to private buyers and government-sponsored housing associations.
It isn’t yet clear if the Olympic site will necessarily be a sought-after place to live once the Games are gone. One architecture writer described the accommodation blocks as "a tad forbidding, not indeed very villagey at all," and compared them to the "much-criticized estates of the 1960s."
However, former competitor Edwards remains optimistic about the site, and the village experience. "There's a feel of camaraderie, support," he told The Independent. "It's a great place to be. I know what it's like to turn up at an Olympics with all those hopes and fears. You have to have the platform right. It's not a five-star resort but for an Olympic Village this is outstanding."
More London 2012 coverage:
- Terror suspect's eye color? Flying cameras to spy during Games
- Londoners express hopes, frustrations as Olympics come to town
- Flagship McDonalds in Olympic Park becomes super-sized
- Olympic torchbearers race to cash in
- Will world's most expensive cable car be ready for Olympics?
- Now towering over London: 'The Godzilla of public art'
- Venues for the London 2012 Olympic Games
- Bad neighbors for Team USA? Occupy camp faces ax
- VIDEO: Olympic torchbearer proposes mid-relay
- Brits revel in gloom ahead of Games, but don't believe the gripe
- Olympic housing crunch: Landlords evict tenants to gouge tourists
- At London Olympics, dogs have sniffed out key anti-terror role
- Slideshow: When the Olympics is your neighbor
- Go behind the scenes with our 'TODAY in London' blog
Leave a Comment:
Luxury?...it's not a vacation...git'er done and bring home the gold...USA!...USA!!...USA!!!
Maybe yer right pard.....but I'd at least like to fit in the bed
This article is entirely mssing the fact that London is the world's capital for the most expensive housing: my brother can hardly afford his place in Islington and he's got a posh job. The 'closet' that I used to rent was so small I could touch both walls at once if I stretched, and at 1000 pounds (TEN YEARS AGO) per month it was cheap! Probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 1800 pounds or more by now....IF the old place is still standing. Next time hold it in Tokyo - I guarantee the space won't be any bigger and the price will be nearly the same.
NOT SUPER SIZED---------------- more like undersized
Agree, this isn't supposed to be a 1st Class hotel. It's functional enough for them to do what they need to do.
Bed too small? Then sleep on the floor.
this is quite the ignorant comment from an obvious non-athlete.
I don't hero-worship or kiss athlete ass like some people around here do.
Hint-hint.
Don, is it hero worship or is it just not very wise for a world class athlete to sleep on the floor the night before having to physically compete against the best in the world? I don't kiss athlete ass either, but I don't think it is asking too much to have a decent sized bed to sleep in.
neither do i don but you want the athlete to not be sore from how they had to sleep, if they can even get to sleep on those tiny beds, when they compete.
Well good, that'll increase their stamina even more.
And while we're at it, let's get some decent size beds for the homeless out there. They could certainly use it.
At least the place looks clean even though a bit boring. But in a time of economic recession world wide, a somewhat reasonably functional living quarters is certainly adequate and more than what a lot of people already have (like those living in the streets). However, a very short bed is totally inappropriate and inadequate, which could conceivably sabotage one chance of success due to lack of comfortable sleep with limited space. The same goes for the thin walls that could interfere with an athletes down time for rest and peace (or do the poorer folks who will be living there after the events not need any peace, quiet, and good rest?) Many athletes are over 6 feet, which is too long for such short beds. And what about the sumo-wrestlers, who are wider in girth? They'd most likely not even fit in the narrow beds. Also, there most definitely be a restroom with a shower in each unit. By not having done that, they risk health problems, congested peak hours that might possibly make one late for an event, etc. It makes you wonder how durable and practical the building really is, esp. if it is to be used for a longer period of time after the events.
They have beds, food, water, shelter. What more do they need? They're not there to lounge--they're there to compete, and they are lucky to have the opportunity. There are athletes from around the world making do with much, much less, and still kicking our asses in competitions. Pretty sure they won't be complaining. Just winning.
These facilities will be used for a few weeks. It shouldn't be a five-star resort. Remember Greece and their opulence and overspending on the Olympics? Yeah, look where they are now.
Correct - and you are only at work for 8 hours so you may as well wait until you get home to eat
Plenty of other people don't eat but one meal a day and do just fine
People please get off this bed issue, you have been sucked in by another misleading item in an MSN news article. A single bed in England although about three inches narrower is still exactly the same length as an American bed. If the bed if from the continent of Europe which it could be being Ikea was mentioned then the bed would be about four inches longer. And anyway why if there is no footboard on a bed like the bed pictured would you not hang yourfeet off the end instead of resting your head on the headboard?
Typical British "Class"! Basically none.
They just don't have any style or class at all as "proudly" displayed by the "Olympic Village".
Crappy and cheap are the words.
Subliminal
Your an idiot with no class.
And stay away from the missile launchers on the roofs !
They have security problems all over! There will be too many security checks!
Look at the insensitive Olympics games people. They have Dow Chemicals as one of the sponsors!
What's the big deal about Dow being a sponsor? *Every* sponsor you can possibly name has some black mark against them. Apple, Starbucks, Volkswagen... it doesn't matter who it is. The whole matter is absurd: here a company is donating money for something GOOD and it's being derided.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/9130231/London-2012-Olympics-Dow-Chemical-puts-blame-for-ongoing-crisis-in-Bhopal-at-Indian-governments-door.html
"some black mark"
Mark .... Dows black mark is not "some black mark".
Its bhopal plant's gas leak killed tens of thousands of people. It has dragged the case for 20 years and is offering to settle for a meager amount ( about $2000/death). Dow chemicals is the very definition of an Evil Corporation.
logical - The event happened in 1984. Dow bought Union Carbide in 2001.
*How* was that Dow's fault again?
Yes, I stand corrected. I wrongly assumed Dow was the owner when the tragedy occurred.
Hey, thanks Logical.
Mark from Bridgeport:
Union Carbide was a culprit in the massive gas deaths in Bhopal. Even now people are having impacts of the gassing.
Union Carbide sold the company Exide and then Dow Chemicals bought it.
Dow Chemicals, hopefully knew about the Bhopal tragedy and still bought Union Carbide.
Now it can't act as if it is not responsible or does not care for its earlier history!
Even on Dow Chemicals being a sponser, there have been protests.
When it happens to someone else it is ignore the massive crimes!
Jonathan - Using your logic, I'm going to arrest you for the hit & run death of a girl. Your car was the murder weapon, it doesn't matter that the incident was 10 years ago and you'd only bought the car 5 years ago. Enjoy your time in jail.
Yes, I believe that there have been protest by the usual ignorants, whom would be the first to cry and wail about unfairness if they went to jail ala the car example I just gave above. Why aren't these idiots protesting the Government of India, whom was ALSO a stakeholder of UC?
Mark from Bridgeport: Why the same logic was not used in oil spills?
Are there different laws for different people in the world?
Which oil spill are you referring to?
Well, yes, depending on where one is. However, MOST of those laws agree that if someone wasn't the purpetrator of the crime that they are not responsible. Now if you really want to go live in North Korea where saying the wrong thing can get your entire family jailed for 3 generations... you go right ahead!
Working from memory, I think the controversy involving Dow is that, while they were not in any way implicated in the Bhopal incident, when they bought Union Carbide and all their liabilities they were involved in a 'deal' to vastly minimize UC's agreed compensatory obligations to the people affected in India.
(Similar to buying a bankrupt company while doing a deal to not pay any of their creditors.)
Ligeti: The problem with that is the Government of India was a (25%) stakeholder in the UC operations. They spent a decade doing *nothing*, and then instead went after Dow after they bought UC.
So how does the Indian Government possibly claim any moral highground?
I'm guessing that not a single professional athlete is going to stay in the village. can you imagine Lebron James slumming it there? This aint your granpa's olympics.
Obviously this is the case, but the rooms look like they are on the same level as a decent college dorm. This should be more than acceptable to the large majority of the athletes and for those from third world countries will probably be far better than where they live at home. As for converting them into housing after the Olympics, these may not be the most desirable of places to live, but it is still going to be far better than being on the street. The aim for the dorms to be converted to housing for people who otherwise might not be able to afford a place to live, and I seriously doubt that anyone given the option of one of these places and being homeless would complain too much.
I don't see much of a future for this facility. The idea might be that it will turn into housing and apartments, but it reminds me of Cabrini-Green style public housing which ultimately had to be demolished.
Anita man to hug and kiss:
One big difference is that England doesn't have the NRA ensuring that criminals have easy access to guns. Even with their lousy food, bad teeth, and shape-shifting, reptilian Monarchy, England is a much safer place.
Yes, David is right. In England you just get stabbed instead of shot. It's a much better death.
So Mark,
If I gave you the option to let me stab you with a chance of you escaping or fighting back, or let me shoot you, which would you prefer?
chipsamoy: That's a moot point:
1) If you're going to stab me, you're so close that I'm not going to be able to do much of anything about it anyway.
2) Why do you assume that the criminal with the gun has it legally? Exactly how many criminals do you think go into a gun shop and legally purchase the gun and show their ID to do so?!
double post. (thanks vine!)
triple post (thanks vine!)
David: where the bloody hell have you been mate? There are shootings everyday somewhere in England: only the criminals have guns and anyone that tells you any different is either deluded or lying. There are more attacks with other weapons, like knives, so the survivability rate is higher, but other than that its still a concrete jungle. There are boroughs here and there where you do not want to be out after dark, escpecially if you're from another country. London is beautiful (not Soho) and Surrey and Sussex counties are still beautiful and more peaceful for the most part; of course I'm biased...
OMG David, Mark and Alex!!! How on earth did you get from the Olympic village and its amenities to crime in England??? Find another story on which to exchange your "pleansantries." PLEASE.
Focus, people, focus.
Ahem. We are focused!
LONDON -- British police expect another outburst of rioting in London -- possibly even this summer as the country prepares to host the Olympic Games -- as economic hardship pushes more people towards social unrest, a study found on Monday.
http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/02/12523787-study-british-police-say-expect-more-riots?lite
One minor point: there are a grand total of 900 homicides (including vehicular homicides) in Britain each year, a country of 63 million people. Just 300 hundred of these are firearm homicides.
If our murder rate was translated to the US that would give the US about 4,000 homicides a year.... you have 15,000 homicides by firearm alone.
The UK has one of the lowest murder rates in the world.
Tear this down afterwards. With thin walls and small rooms it will be hell on earth for the tenants, and they will have learning and mental problems down the way.
This is the Olympics and not vacation. The rooms look more than adequate. Some atheletes don't like it... tough...quit being a whiner. Sick of atheletes with the attitude...example, that Italian player after their loss to Spain yesterday when he walked off the field right after the game without shaking hands. What a sore loser and poor sport.
i guess you don't realize that for alot of the athletes the room isn't adequate. like 6ft 5 in to 7 foot basketball players just for a start.
Bethanneq: "that Italian player" Mario Balotelli - what a sportsman. Same bloke that caught his bathroom on fire in Manchester when he and his pissed friends were setting off fireworks. (I still wonder if that was in the shower....) Plays for Manchester City, who pipped Manchester United to the PL title this year: or should I say BOUGHT IT since their sugar daddy is a sheik loaded with oil money. Actually, come to think of it, there are many spoiled brats on their team.....
Oh Yes: CONGRATS TO ESPANA E FABREGAS! Well played as I expected!
Like another poster stated: I really doubt any American basketball players will be staying in the Village. I get it if they are too tall for the beds but beyond that they should not be expecting the Ritz.
is america the only country with a basketball team? if so, we're a shoe in for the gold! or are you saying that the other country's players don't matter? doesn't matter either way cause basketball is not the only sport that has people over 6 ft and according to the person who's photo is shown, laying in bed, he's 6ft and needed more room. his comment about the size of the bed is comment 11.2 below.
Cannot imagine any of the American high profile athletes hanging out in this place, even with the 10 pool tables. The elite do not mingle with the commoners.
Why should this be a "5 star" place to begin with? It shouldn't that's why. It is a place to stay for MAYBE 2 weeks. If the athletes are not good enough to stay there - stay at one of the GOOD 5 star places and see how much they have to pay! These are temporary living quarters at best. Who cares? These are athletes NOT rock stars.
texas, this isn't even a 3 star accomodation.
Well, they better get over themselves because it will only be the other elite that will be using them....
actually, the truly elite like the USA basketball team will probably pay to stay in a nicer place alex.
i would be willing to bet their rooms are a little better than our troops housing!
The Olympics being held in England of King George, where they don't allow guns and have few murders is just a conspiracy by Obama and Holder to take away my right to have an assault rifle and 30 round clips of ammo for my glock.
Violent crime in London exceeds New York. Not only that, but gun crime in the UK has doubled over the past decade, whereas it's going down in the US.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/6438601/Gun-crime-doubles-in-a-decade.html
I find your fear of law abiding citizens having Constitutional rights... disturbing.
I've 15 round clips for my Glocks; haven't had a problem changing them out quickly, either.....
Mark of Bridgeport is spot on: the crime has been terrible as of late.
You three should get a room...
They are there to do well not to sleep all day so where they sleep shouldn't matter at all.
Absolutely! although the guy pictured (Alastair Jamieson) looks like he could use a longer bed:)
You're right, it could have been longer :) And I'm only 6 ft tall, which doesn't bode well for a lot of these athletes.
carol, it's hard to do well when you didn't sleep the night before cause you couldn't fit on the bed or even worse you're sore from the uncomfortable angle you had to sleep at to fit.
Ooh, bet Carol's running away with her tail between her legs after that one!
to short for basketball players but you could get three gymnists in there quite comfortably
Alastair Jamieson I say you are a muck stirrer at best.
Do you expect us to believe that as a cost saving measure the Olympic committee went out and had custom made short beds manufactured just for these facilities. I would think this would probably nearly double the cost of a standard mattress. A British single bed is six feet three inches long, same as an American and although as a six footer that would only leave you three inches to spare assuming you sleep without any curling of your body I doubt any sane person would rest their head on that thin head board as opposed to letting your feet hang off the end. Assuming of course that the head is where you house your brain but in your case I doubt it.
Here we have the world's greatest athletes in their prime living in the dorms, not getting laid. The sacrifices these athletes make is amazing.
LOL! Yeah, it's a joke -- thin walls only halt the immodest (which most athlete's arent!) and the smaller beds won't make a bit of difference.
I've heard the phrase "No sex please, we're British", but this is crazy!
Eek. I meant the modest, of course.
I envision Bangathon. I don't recall caring too much at that age in the dorms about noisy hookups. Ok If there was too much action going on, someone might throw a fire alarm to root-em-out and see who's with who- but that was just for fun.
The Beds look way too short. I know that if you do not get a comfortable good night's rest it is going to be hard to give 100% in the competitions.
Someone else has to use that comforter and it is pulled all the way up to the author's armpits. I can't imagine that it will be washed before the athletes move in. Yuk and gross!
That's not the comforter, it's the actual duvet. Those get washed, I would hope. The alternative was you got to see my armpits.
Hummm, that's a rather "firm" pillow you're resting your head on, Alastair! :) Ouch!!
Ha! It's not exactly a scene from House Beautiful, is it?
Americans clamor all over Ikea at home, what's the big deal? Ikea not good enough for us when we're out conquering the world at the Olympics? I'd guess that many of our professional athletes stay elsewhere during the olympics anyway. These dorms are for those non celebrities with average incomes. It will be fine.
ikea sucks and nobody clamors for it. it's cheap and breaks too easily.
There are really tall athletes in almost every sport. How come no-one thought of this or are there rooms with beds of different sizes. Maybe Alastair got unlucky? :) I find it hard to think that the London Olympic committee and their consultants wouldn't think of something so basic.
And what of the sumo team?
@hatr, oh but they do. Drop in on one of the stores and just watch.
there's no ikea anywhere near me to drop in on.
Considering the number of occupants at any given time, I suspect that [10] ten pool tables will not even dent the number of athletes waiting in line for a game. We have local sports bars that offer far, far more than just 10 tables, and the capacity doesn't even come close to the sheer volume that's expected at the Olympics.
16,000 competitors total so start standing in line for a game now.
Evidently, these people are going to be living there when the Olympics are over....
Michael Phelps has never consumed 12,000 calories in a day. Please fact check your information.
I have to agree, I am a large guy at 6'5 275# and could not eat half of what they say he eats for breakfast alone. I would be lucky to consume that much food in a full day.
Yes, he actually does consume 12,000 calories a day, google it.
john deaux - No he doesn't. Try to find a single article that is directly quoted by Phelps. It is a myth that started with a NY Post article and spiraled out from there. I heard an interview he gave where he specifically said it was total nonsense. He has given several interviews where he says it's nonsense. There is simply no way to eat that much food.
I have to disagree about possible consumption. Body builders often consume that much - and it is entirely possible if you have acclimated your digestive system to it. When someone expends thousands of calories in activity, has very low body fat and a highly efficient digestive tract supported by supplemental enzymes it is not only possible, but common in certain types of athletes. I work with body builders for a nutritional supplement company. In bulking mode a builder eats 4-5 servings , drinks high-calorie (as in 1000 calories) protein shakes several times a day and does this daily for months. Even if Phelps doesn't do this, other athletes do. Its not that unusual.
Phelps does not eat 12,000 cal/day, the 2008 article was a fabrication as Skup said.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2012/05/michael-phelps-12000-calorie-diet-just-a-myth/1?csp=34sports&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+UsatodaycomSports-TopStories+%28Sports+-+Top+Stories%29#.T6wstFL2KSq
That said, 12,000 calories is absurd! The worst (commonly available) thing one can eat is a Burger King Triple Whopper Sandwich with Cheese and Mayo @ 1,250 calories ; 84 g fat (32 g saturated, 3.5 g trans) ; 1,600 mg sodium.
That'd be 9.6 of those sandwiches a day. Every day. Even with a blender I doubt it's possible. Heck, the 15,360 mg sodium might do one in -- the average American gets 3,400mg/day, the recommended maximum is 2,300 per day. One would literally be eating enough salt per day for an entire week!
With actual healthy food? It would actually require a higher volume. Never mind eating almost 10 huge burgers, you'd need to eat POUNDS per meal... ie: 12,000 calories would be about 1000 bananas(!).
I am so glad that President Obama has paid for 55% of this!! He agreed with the British that since the USA usually wins a LOT of the medals, we SHOULD pay the majority of the cost. Wow, I sure am glad the USA has the money to pay for the 55% he pledged.
Is Obama crazy?? I think he is!! Besides not having a legal USA birth certificate, he has now indebted the USA to a couple billion dollars for the Olympic costs. I sure am glad the USA is now Socialist under Obama, we will ALL PAY for this - right?? Right????? Oh, wait, no, only the poor lowly folk will pay while Obama's list of donations excludes his buddies from having to pay. Nice. Become a Democrat contributor and you dont have to pay for anything. Nice.
A vote for Obama is a vote to continue his Socialist path. We can be the US -- SR some day under King Obama. Wow, what a future.
Hey RWING, I'd LOVE to see your source for this little tidbit. If you're going to just make up random things, at least try to make them believable. Needless to say, after you can't source this, we will expect a full retraction of your teabag rant.
Only a typically narcissistic, moronic American fool would make the Olympics in London about American politics. So, RWING, while you're talking about craziness, go hang out with the mirror (something with which I'm sure you share deep love anyway).
With as little credibility as the GOP has at this time, it is pretty hard to make them look bad but you're doing a great job.
I don't know about Obama, but I'm pretty sure about you....
Yes. Thanks, RWING, for representing the US so well to the rest of the world. I'd say more but Zombie Troy has already covered pretty much all that needs to be said.
I'd steal the bedspread and sell it on ebay for a small fortune.
Well it does not look like a torture chamber either...
Just a thought but wasn't the design short sighted? Just what future use will these structures become after the 17 days of july 2012? Awfully large for an ophanage and no provisions for cell doors if to be a prison of some sort. To plain for political or white collar criminals but they have enough room for several golf courses to entertain them and they would have to turn the bar wet for sure.
Did you even read the article OpinionatedSOB? They are already purchased by individuals and housing groups for the government to be converted to low cost housing.
but who is going to want to live there when the games are over?
UHH the poor that will now have government subsidized housing.
In dorms?
it's better than outside in the elements. especially with britain's abundance of rain.
It goes to say that when the games were in Atlanta, the atheletes stayed in similar housing. That housing was sold to Georgia State university afterwards, and then sold to Georgia Tech. Today, it is known as North Avenue Apartments and they ARE actually college dorms (the insides look similar to that in the picture, actually).
That's the athletes' room? A bit too spartan for what they deserve!!
I betcha their managers are getting posh hotel rooms with fluffy towels, feather pillows, jacuzzi baths and all the perks.!
It's spartan now... after they bring home the medals they can get their sponsorships and make the big bucks and live in luxury! Right now they're still working for it.
I think these dorms are okay, but I don't like the thin walls... later they could be used as a travel hostel or something -- but no one, rich or poor, wants thin walls!