The start of work by the Hellenic Olympic Committee to clean the marble at the Panathenaic Stadium has attracted the attention of the international media.E due to the new look that the Kallimarmaro will soon take on.
There is great interest in the stadium where the 1896 Olympic Games were revived, and a crew from the leading international news agency, the Associated Press, visited the Kallimarmaro, filmed the construction work, and spoke with the President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee.
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The report, titled “Athens is cleaning its all-marble Olympic Stadium for the first time in more than a century,” features footage of the cleaning and statements by HOC President Isidoros Kouvelos. This report has been picked up by dozens of leading news networks, particularly in the U.S., such as ABC and NBC. Notably, even the president of the Organizing Committee for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, Casey Wasserman, reached out to Mr. Kouvelos, congratulated him on the initiative, and expressed his eagerness to visit Kallimarmaro: “I can’t wait to see it finished and shining as it deserves.”
Speaking to the AP, the president of the Hellenic Olympic Committee outlined the work already underway as well as what is to follow: “We, as the Hellenic Olympic Committee, have taken on the historic responsibility of the work at the Panathenaic Stadium to make it even more spectacular. We are replacing the track so it can host Diamond League-level track and field events; new LED lights will be installed, and the cleaning of the marble has already begun. In this way, the Kallimarmaro will showcase its splendor and stand as humanity’s premier monument to the Olympic movement. “This will be something truly significant for our country, for Athens, and for all of modern civilization.”
Mr. Kouvelos explained which method was chosen for cleaning the marble. “At first, we considered the option of cleaning with laser machines, but in the end, the opinion of leading architect Manolis Sarris prevailed—he is the foremost expert and knows the Parthenon marbles, which are also made of Pentelic marble— and it was decided to clean the marble with tap water. A superficial cleaning, just on the surface, so as not to damage the marble, using low pressure and specialized equipment, so that the marble regains its full luster while preserving its patina of age.”
Finally, he noted that the first results will be seen on September 10 at the Torch Lighting and Handover Ceremony for the 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games, in the presence of IOC President Kirsty Coventry. “We have the strong support of our sponsors, and we are able to carry out these projects because they represent a massive investment. After all, the Panathenaic Stadium was rebuilt in 1896 with the help of sponsors so that the Olympic Games could be held there. We are now receiving support for the projects at Kallimarmaro from Vangelis Marinakis’s company, Capital, and we thank him. We’ll have a more complete picture on September 10, when the Torch Lighting and Handover Ceremony for the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar will take place here, in the presence of IOC President Kirsty Coventry. As Greeks, we should be especially proud that the Olympic Flame Ceremonies are taking place in Ancient Olympia and at the Panathenaic Stadium, the very places where the Olympic Values of friendship, respect, peace, and the brotherhood of peoples were born,” Mr. Kouvelos concluded in remarks to the Associated Press.
