ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on Athens and describes the planning guidelines, argues that a legacy of sustainable urban regeneration for the city of Athens and the region of Attica was achieved and presents a number of preconditions to be met for urban legacies to be maximized and sustained. A detailed analysis of the Olympic Games 2004 in Athens demonstrates the capacity of a mega sport event of the size and complexity of the Olympic Games (OG) to support sustainable urban development in the post-event period. Mega-events provide a strong opportunity for the sustainable urban development of the host city. In OG, the choice of sites of Olympic sporting venues followed a decentralized pattern, with the main venue being the Olympic Sports Complex located in Marousi and the remaining sporting venues scattered in various parts of the urban agglomeration of Athens. Tourism, in the wider agglomeration of Athens as well as in neighboring prefects, enjoyed a massive boost due to OG.
