Palats Sportu (Kiev Metro)

Palats Sportu ( _uk. Палац Спорту, _ru. Дворец Спорта, Dvorets Sporta) is a station on the Syretsko-Pecherska Line of the Kiev Metro. Opened on December 31, 1989 as part of the first stage of the line, it formed third and (so far) last transfer point of the system.

The station is named after Kiev's central Sports Palace, and as a result, its architectural layout (work of architects A.Krushinsky and N.Aleshkin) follows carefully on the theme. Unlike other pylon-trivault stations, Palats Sportu features a non-circular shape of the central hall's ceiling. Made of white plastic panels, this contrasts with the more darker colour gamma of the rest of the station, and also blends carefully with the lighting elements that are suspended from the apex, just like in a large sport complex.

As mentioned earlier, the remaining of the station is made of darker tones, that include dark brown metal planes for the pylon sides facing the halls and green marble for the internal pylon walls. The platform halls' colour gamma is opposite to the central one, which consists of dark plastic planes that cover the ceiling, with one line of fluorescent lighting element running the length of the hall. Also unlike the central hall, the white marbled walls, instead of being horizontal, are curved, and continue the vault all the way to the track level. The floor is covered with neutral brown marble.

Other unique features of the station include the sound isolation of one hall to another, making it impossible to hear an incoming train even from the central hall, this was done specifically as the station formed Kiev's third transfer point with Ploscha Lva Tolstoho of the Kurenivsko-Chervonoarmiyska Line, in an attempt not to disorientate the passengers.

The station's vestibule is located on the Sportyvna square, next to the complex itself. During mass celebrations (e.g. Eurovision, which took place inside the palace), the station's exits and entrances to the surface are closed, and it functions solely as a transfer point to avoid large crowds.

External links

* [http://www.metro.kiev.ua/Ukr/DvoretsSportaUkr.html Kyivsky Metropoliten] - Station description and Photographs
* [http://www.metropoliten.kiev.ua/station.php?lang=0&station_id=35 Metropoliten.kiev.ua] - Station description and Photographs
* [http://metro.zarohem.cz/kyjev/02-sireskopecerska/04-palacsporta/index.html Zarohem.cz] - Photographs