2014 IAAF World Indoor Track and Field Championships

5 things you should know about Sopot

Mar 5, 2014 by Isaac Wood

As we inch our way closer to the opening of the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Sopot Poland, there are probably many of you that are wondering what and where Sopot is, and why is the meet here. I figured while I fight off jet lag, I could explain a little bit about the city that I have spent the last day in. To give you a little inside knowledge about the city that's hosting Worlds, here are five interesting facts about Sopot.

#1 - Ergo Arena (where the meet is held) is the Madison Square Garden of the area.

This place is huge! Everywhere you go in the city, there is a sign that is pointing you towards the arena. As you pull up to the place, it's like you are entering a major sports arena. Ergo Arena is home to many concerts (Lady Gaga performed there in November 2013), has hosted many professional basketball games, and just recently played host to the 2013 Men's European Volleyball Championship.

#2 - The Baltic Sea is beautiful and within a stone's throw of most hotels.

The beautiful and well-known Baltic Sea is literally a football's throw away from me as I write this (well if I had an arm like Uncle Rico). If you need a reason to believe the Baltic Sea is beautiful, check this out:

#3 - The taxis are extremely affordable

Polish zlotys are about 3x the U.S. dollar and I can get just about anywhere for under 20 zlotys via a cab. Plus, if you can speak just even a tiny bit of Polish, the cab driver will love you and it makes for a less awkward ride.

#4 - There are IAAF Sopot 2014 Billboards/Posters everywhere

I know that other places in the U.S. that host big meets do similar things, but nothing on this scale. You think the amount of Cross Country Town USA banners in Terre Haute are annoying? Imagine that every block within miles of Arena has some sort of notice about the race. It's actually been nice for me as it has helped me get around and explain to the cab driver why I'm there. Also, why I look really confused.

#5 - Sopot is essentially a tri-cities area

Getting into Sopot is easy because the Gdansk airport is only 20 minutes away from Sopot. Gdansk, Sopot, and Gdynia are a part of a 1 million person tri-cities area.

The cool thing about that is Gdansk airport is it's easily accessible for most of Europe and finding your way to Sopot from Gdansk is simple. For me, I just followed a bunch of athletes and coaches as they were surrounded by a bunch of teenagers with clipboards and signs about the meet. You can't escape the World Indoor Championships here and it's awesome!