Preparations of Olympic proportions.

Wood will play a starring role in the Centennial Olympic Games taking place duly 19-Aug. 4 in Atlanta. WOOD & WOOD PRODUCTS looks at some of the wood projects and products related to the international athletic competition.

Beginning only 18 days after the closing ceremonies of the Centennial Olympic Games take place in Atlanta's new 85,000-seat Olympic Stadium, the 1996 International Woodworking Machinery & Furniture Supply Fair (Aug. 2225), promises to be a drastic departure from past IWFs in both atmosphere and ambiance. Since Sept 8, 1990 (the date Atlanta was chosen over sentimental favorite Athens, Greece, to host this summer's Olympic Games) the city has undergone a major facelift.

The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) was formed in 1991 with the responsibility of paying for, and organizing, the games. The ACOG budget of $1.58 billion needed to stage the '96 Olympics is being raised in the private sector with money coming from the sale of broadcast rights, sponsorships, tickets, licensed products, commemorative coins and various other sources.

A meaty portion of this budget is being funneled into the wood and wood products industries.

ACOG is in the process of finishing 10 new sports venues for the Games - eight of them are permanent facilities which will be turned over to government and educational institutions for use by the public and university students when the Games conclude. Two of the new ventures - archery and cycling - are temporary structures and the area on which they are constructed will be restored to its natural state when competition ends. Also, eight new dorms at Georgia Tech will become part of the Olympic Village, which will have its own town square - a $1.7 million plaza with a circular fountain, a sculpture and a 300-seat amphitheater.

In addition to city-wide tree planting and renovation of the Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, a 21-acre facility with fountains, trees, landscaped topography, paths, resting places and an amphitheater has been created from an underdeveloped area of the city. This $50 million Centennial Olympic Park has been envisioned as the central gathering place for the hundreds of thousands of visitors who will come to the Olympic Games. The park was constructed by the State of Georgia with funds from private sources, including $15 million that ACOG expects to raise through the sale of commemorative bricks that will pave the walkways.

The Georgia World Congress Center, home of IWF, will undergo some minor work in preparation for its role as host of the fencing, handball, judo, modern pentathlon, table tennis, weightlifting and wrestling events.

Despite the sizable price tag, not to mention the sizable headache of hosting an Olympiad, most predict that the stimulation to area businesses should more than make up for the disruptions caused to Georgians by the staging of the Games in Atlanta.

Through job creation and spending by visitors, the Centennial Olympics could have a $5.1 billion impact on Georgia's economy, according to a study by the University of Georgia business school.

Plenty of businesses and organizations outside of Georgia are also benefiting from the upcoming games, whether the reward be financial or simply the opportunity to take part in a once-in-a-lifetime event. (Only two other Summer Olympics have been held in U.S. cities: St. Louis in 1904 and Los Angeles in 1984.)

Making this year's Olympics even more special is the fact that it is the Centennial anniversary of the modern Olympics, the first of which was held in Athens, Greece, in 1896.

After the Olympics, the city and surrounding areas will also inherit more than $500 million of privately funded sports facilities. The Olympic legacy will include:

* The $209 million Olympic Stadium, site of the opening and closing ceremonies and athletics competition, which will be converted to a 45,000-seat baseball facility that will serve as the new home of the World Champion Atlanta Braves. (Atlanta's Fulton County Stadium, current home of the Braves, will be torn down after hosting the Olympic baseball competition.)

* The $28.5 million Olympic natatorium on the campus of Georgia Tech, which will be the site of the swimming, diving and men's water polo competitions.

* A basketball arena, two field hockey stadiums, supplemental athletic facilities and a drug testing laboratory at the Atlanta University Center.

* The Stone Mountain Park Tennis Complex, an ACOG gift to the Stone Mountain Park.

* The Georgia International Horse Park in Conyers, Ga.

* Permanent boat houses, boat ramps and docks, finish tower and retractable line markers at Lake Lanier, the rowing and canoe/kayak sprint venue.

RELATED ARTICLE: IWF '96 OFFICIALS PLAN FOR A CROWDED ATLANTA

In anticipation of a crowded Atlanta this summer, IWF '96 officials have lined up more hotel rooms than ever before. "We have booked about 15 percent more rooms than we used n 1994," said John Zinn, executive director of IWF.

As the Olympics will be completed three weeks before the show begins on Aug. 22, the primary competition for rooms and services in the city will be the Paralympic Games for physically challenged athletes.

"That is a much, much smaller event than the Olympics, but it will still create some competition for rooms and restaurant facilities and things of that nature," Zinn said.

As far as the exhibit area is concerned, the ABC Hall of the Georgia World Congress Center will be used as the international broadcast center during the Olympic Games, and will also be used for post editing after the Games are concluded.

"This will shorten the amount of move-in time for our supplier side of the show on the ABC side," Zinn said. "We will have approximately three days of move-in time for that side of the building. Generally, we've had five days in the past, so this will create some shortened time, but it probably will not create a problem for 95 percent of the exhibitors in there.

"For the guys who are much bigger aria have a lot of display work to do, it will create some shortened time period for them, and they'll probably have to work some pretty long hours to get set up; depending on how well they are prepared before they get here. Obviously, pre-planning is the key to success in a trade show, and the more that you can do at home before you get here, the better off you're going to be," Zinn said.

Zinn added that IWF might use the Georgia Dome, located next to the GWCC, for exhibits in 1998.