It was Victor Balck – the father of Swedish sports – who …

… through his decisive contribution to the International Olympic Committee secured the fifth Olympic Games in 1912 for Sweden and Stockholm. When the decision was finally made, it was up to the only national sports organization, the Swedish Central Association for the Promotion of Sports, to build an arena for the games, to recruit an experienced architect and to choose a suitable location for the future Olympic Stadium. The choice fell on a young and successful architect, Torben Grut. He grew up in a small house in Västergötland, but with Danish parents.

Grut also designed many of the stylish figures on the patterned brick facades, the clock on the Clock Tower, the fence around the arena, the two walrus heads on the two towers, and the sculptures of Ask and Embla (the first humans in Norse mythology) that adorn the Clock Tower. As an extra feature, he planned to decorate the stadium arena with 80 stone sculptures and build granite blocks on the outer facade.

There were discussions about several possible locations: Friesen Park on the southern part of Djurgården, areas on Lidingö and in Råsunda, one on Laudugårdsgärdet and a refresh and extension of the recently inaugurated Östemalms IP, north of Valhallvägen. But at this particular location, committees for Djursholm and Lidingö’s athletics activities had plans to build a joint stadium. The next best location was chosen, Idrottsparken, a nearby area north of Valhallavägen between Lidingövägen (then Sturevägen) and Drottning Sofias väg. The area between the three roads and the northern ridge was large enough for a stadium with a four-hundred-meter track and stands.

The main stadiums built for the Olympics in Paris 1900, St. Louis 1904 and London 1908 had been temporary stadiums intended only for the games. Initially, something similar had been planned for Stockholm, a temporary wooden stadium at a cost of 300,000 kronor to be financed by a lottery for the whole of Sweden under the leadership of the Central Association. The plans changed and Torben Grut was commissioned by the association to create a permanent stadium in cement, stone and brick.

Grut gave the building the shape of a magnet with legs facing the northern mountain. The arena was complemented by two ornate towers and a beautiful curved building facing Valhallavägen, inspired by the Colosseum in Rome. The open area between Valhallavägen and the building was to become a beautiful wooden park. The building’s materials were to be Swedish. The foundation consisted of Hätogranit and handmade bricks from Helsingborgs Ängtegelfabriks AB (400,000 bricks). The company Kreuger&Toll was commissioned and the cost of the construction was a little more than 1.3 million Swedish kronor. Due to a lack of donations, the large planned program was never completed, but the bricks are still there.

Stockholm’s Olympic Stadium became a school for similar arenas in other countries and has been a monument since the beginning of the 20th century. The grandstand, between the two towers, has been completely rebuilt, the changing rooms have been refreshed and under the grandstand is the large Torben Grut Hall. The Olympic Games were a great success, especially in terms of organization, and Sweden was the leading nation in the points table. Despite a record-breaking rainy summer, the weather during the games was brilliant.
Stockholm Stadium still holds the “world record of world records” in athletics with 83. This makes it the “all-star” arena of the athletics world.