Drammenshallen

Drammenshallen Inside, the floor is natural wood, laid down when the arena opened in 1978.

The hall is the home of Drammen HK and Glassverket IF. The four courts take up most of the floor space, leaving room for stands that hold around 4,000 people for a match. The capacity shifts for concerts, but that is a different kind of crowd. The arena sits in the Marienlyst district, close to the river, and it is easy to forget that music once filled this space more than sport did.

In the 1980s, the hall hosted almost every major rock act touring Norway. Queen, Bob Dylan, Elton John, and Iron Maiden all played here when the city needed a place big enough for their fans. The sound of a bass drum in a wooden hall is different from the echo of a ball against a wall, but the energy is the same. The arena has kept its name since the day it opened, when it was built by a local contractor who also donated the handball player sculpture outside the entrance. It is a quiet building, but it has held some loud memories.