For the 2000 Summer Olympics, a total of thirty sports venues were used. After Melbourne hosted the 1956 Summer Olympics, Australia made several bids for the Summer Olympics before finally winning the 2000 Summer Olympics by two votes over Beijing, China. Venue construction was set at the Homebush Bay area of Sydney in an effort to rehabilitate the land. Environmental studies of the area in the early 1990s forced remediation to be used for about a fifth of the site selected. Fifteen new venues were constructed for the Games. Many of the venues used for the 2000 Games continue to be in use as of 2020, although some of the pre-existing facilities have been demolished and replaced.

Venues Sydney Olympic Park VenueSportsCapacity Ref. Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre Tennis Main Court - 10,000 Court 2 - 4,000 Court 3 - 2,000 Courts 4-10 - 7x 2002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 375. Accessed 16 December 2010. Stadium Australia Ceremonies (opening/closing)AthleticsFootball/Soccer (final) 115,6002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 376. Accessed 16 December 2010. Sydney Olympic Park Hockey Centre Field hockey 15,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 381. Accessed 16 December 2010. State Sports Centre Table tennisTaekwondo 5,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 382. Accessed 16 December 2010. Sydney Baseball Stadium Baseball (final)Modern pentathlon (riding, running) 14,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 371. Accessed 16 December 2010. Sydney International Archery Park Archery 17,5002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 387. Accessed 16 December 2010. Sydney International Aquatic Centre DivingModern pentathlon (swimming)SwimmingSynchronized swimmingWater polo (men's final) 10,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 386. Accessed 16 December 2010. Sydney SuperDome Basketball (final)Gymnastics (artistic/ trampoline) 18,2002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 390. Accessed 16 December 2010. The Dome & Exhibition Complex BadmintonBasketballGymnastics (rhythmic)HandballModern pentathlon (fencing, shooting)Volleyball (indoor) 10,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 391. Accessed 16 December 2010.

Sydney VenueSportsCapacity Ref. Blacktown Olympic Park BaseballSoftball 8,000 (softball) 4,000 (baseball)2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 370. Accessed 17 December 2010. Bondi Beach Volleyball (beach) 10,000 2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 372. Accessed 17 December 2010. Centennial Parklands Cycling (road) Not listed.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 113. Accessed 17 December 2010. Dunc Gray Velodrome Cycling (track) 6,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 373. Accessed 17 December 2010. Marathon course Athletics (marathon) Not listed.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 106. Accessed 17 December 2010. North Sydney Athletics (marathon start) Not listed. Cruising Yacht Club of Australia Sailing 10,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 379. Accessed 17 December 2010. Penrith Whitewater Stadium Canoeing (slalom) 12,5002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 377. Accessed 17 December 2010. Ryde Aquatic Leisure Centre Water polo 3,9002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 378. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre BoxingFencingJudoWeightliftingWrestling 7,500 (weightlifting),9,000 (judo & wrestling),10,000 (boxing & fencing)2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 383. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney Entertainment Centre Volleyball 11,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 384. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney Football Stadium Football/Soccer (women's final) 42,5002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 385. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney International Equestrian Centre Equestrian 50,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 388. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney International Regatta Centre Canoeing (sprint)Rowing 20,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 389. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney International Shooting Centre Shooting 7,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 380. Accessed 17 December 2010. Sydney Opera House Triathlon Not listed.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 136-7. Accessed 17 December 2010. Western Sydney Parklands Cycling (mountain biking) 20,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 374. Accessed 17 December 2010.

Outside Sydney VenueLocationSportsCapacity Ref. The Gabba Brisbane Football/Soccer 37,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 392. Accessed 17 December 2010. Bruce Stadium Canberra 25,011 Hindmarsh Stadium Adelaide 20,0002000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 393. Accessed 17 December 2010. Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne 98,000

Before the Olympics

Australia first hosted the Summer Olympics in 1956 at Melbourne. The main venue used was the Melbourne Cricket Ground which hosted the ceremonies (opening/closing), athletic events, and the finals for both field hockey and football.1956 Summer Olympics official report. p. 40. Accessed 19 December 2010.

Sydney first made preliminary plans for the 1972 and 1988 Summer Olympics, but they were not followed through. Melbourne ended the final process and made a bid for the 1988 Summer Games, but withdrew in February 1981. Brisbane made a bid for the 1992 Summer Olympics, losing out to Barcelona, while Melbourne finished fourth in the bidding for the 1996 Summer Olympics won by Atlanta. The first serious review for Sydney as an Olympic city took place in 1973 on rehabilitating the Homebush Bay area as an Olympic site, though those plans were not taken seriously until seven years later, when Sydney was making a preliminary bid for the 1988 Summer Games. Nick Greiner, who served as Premier of New South Wales from 1988 to 1992, led the effort to use the Olympics as a catalyst for rehabilitating Homebush Bay, forming a review committee on this in 1989. The Australian Olympic Committee endorsed this idea provisionally in December 1990 and officially three months later.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 7-14. Accessed 19 December 2010.

In the bid package submitted to the International Olympic Committee for Sydney, all of the venues would be located within 30 minutes of the Homebush Bay Area, where the Sydney Olympic Park would be constructed.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 19. Accessed 19 December 2010. Sydney was selected 45–43 over Beijing in the fourth round of exhaustive voting to host the 2000 Games at the IOC Meeting in Monte Carlo on 23 September 1993.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 21. Accessed 19 December 2010.

For site selection, of Homebush Bay was selected for use though the area was not planned upon completion until 2010's. Sydney's selection to host the 2000 Summer Olympics changed this. The State Sports Centre opened in 1984, and Bicentennial Park opened four years later. The Sydney International Aquatic Centre and Sydney International Athletic Centre were completed in 1994, but by 1995, it was determined by the Sydney Olympic Organising Committee and the International Olympic Committee that venue works needed to be accelerated.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 53-4. Accessed 19 December 2010. In 1995, Bob Carr was elected as New South Wales Premier, with one of his first tasks to develop a masterplan for venue construction. A plan was approved in February 1996, along with lessons learned from 1996 Summer Olympics, leading to modification of the plan in February 1997. Environmental consideration was taken during site selection and construction, including the planting of 16,000 trees around completed venues once construction was completed.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 55-7. Accessed 19 December 2010. Soil and water testing at Homebush Bay in the early 1990s determined that of domestic, commercial and industrial waste was located on of the land, resulting in remediation.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 57. Accessed 19 December 2010. Other items involved at the venues were the removal of electrical transmission lines, the development of rail lines near the venues, the construction of a new ferry wharf, and construction of vehicular parking sites.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 58-61. Accessed 19 December 2010.

Fifteen new venues were under construction by 1995, with all of them being completed in 1999. Temporary venues were added for beach volleyball in Bondi Beach and women's water polo pool in 2000, months prior to the Olympics. 40,000 people were involved in venue construction for the Games.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 62. Accessed 19 December 2010.

The Stadium Australia was constructed on the site of a cattle stockyard before they were sent to the slaughterhouse. Construction was delayed twice before commencing in earnest in September 1996. The stadium was completed in March 1999, and officially opened to the public three months later.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 65. Accessed 19 December 2010. The new Sydney Showground was built to replace the old Sydney Showground at Moore Park. The old Sydney Showground was first used in 1882 as part of the Sydney Royal Easter Show, but was starting to show its age by the 1970s. Construction of the new Showground at Homebush Bay began in October 1997, and was completed for the 1998 Royal Easter Show.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 66-8. Accessed 19 December 2010. The NSW Tennis Centre was constructed on a former home of the Australian Jockey Club from 1841 to 1869.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 69-70. Accessed 19 December 2010. The Sydney International Regatta Centre was constructed near a quarry in Penrith, a suburb of Sydney. It opened in July 1995, with competition starting eight months later.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 72-3. Accessed 19 December 2010. Penrith Whitewater Stadium was constructed following pleas to the IOC from the International Canoe Federation and French President Jacques Chirac after the sport was nearly excluded from the games. Pumps totalling per second delivered the amount of whitewater needed for the slalom canoeing events at Penrith.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 73-4. Accessed 19 December 2010. Holsworthy Barracks was the original site for the Sydney International Shooting Centre, but that was changed due to the site not being available. This resulted in the organisers renovating an existing shooting range to meet International Shooting Sport Federation standards, a renovation that took eighteen months to complete.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 75-6. Bondi Beach was constructed as a temporary venue between March and November 2000, and took up less than twenty percent of the beach area used.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 76-8. Accessed 19 December 2010.

Test events at the venues ran from September 1998 to August 2000.2000 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 151. Accessed 19 December 2010.

During the Olympics

Before the start of the women's marathon, street personnel in Sydney had to tow 137 cars that were parked along the course. Japan's Naoko Takahashi won the event.Wallechinsky, David and Jaime Loucky (2008). "Track & Field (Women): Marathon". In The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition. London: Aurum Press Limited. p. 321.