The reinstatement of the ‘Athletes’ sculptures on the facade of the building on Bolshaya Dmitrovka street is a significant step towards preserving the architectural distinctiveness of the capital’s center. This initiative was championed by Oleg Leonov, an advisor to the rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, a journalist, and a proponent of the ‘United Russia’ party. Leonov, along with activists from the Tverskoy and Zamoskvorechye districts, had previously approached the city’s Department of Cultural Heritage with the proposal to restore these sculptures.
“The restoration of the sculptures will help preserve the architectural features of the city center and recreate the original vision of architect Dmitry Chechulin, who was responsible for the building’s reconstruction project in the late 1930s,” Leonov stated. “I am pleased that Muscovites voted in favor of the sculptures’ restoration and supported our initiative. I am confident that thanks to the specialists at the Department of Cultural Heritage, we will soon see the building as it was known to Muscovites 70 years ago,” Leonov remarked.
He emphasized that residents of Moscow actively engaged in discussions about the initiative from its inception, as reported by the city news agency “Moskva.”
Earlier reports indicated that a vote on the portal “Active Citizen” concluded regarding the restoration of the ‘Athletes’ sculptures in the niches on the facade of the building located at Bolshaya Dmitrovka street, house 2. The vote saw participation from 155,000 city residents, with 80.9 percent supporting the initiative. Another 14.4 percent of voters entrusted the decision to specialists. The figures of athletes, lost approximately 70 years ago, are slated to be recreated based on archival photographs and similar surviving sculptures.
The building on Bolshaya Dmitrovka street was constructed over 200 years ago but underwent a significant reconstruction in the 1930s. At that time, its central facade was adorned with two sculptures. According to archival materials, their author was Armenak Stepanyan, creator of numerous sports-themed monuments. The ‘Athletes’ were depicted holding sporting equipment: a ball and a relay baton. Due to environmental exposure, the material of the sculptures began to deteriorate gradually. By the 1950s, they had become unusable, were dismantled, and subsequently lost.