Ground History
Originally Lahore Stadium, the facility was renamed in 1974 in honour of the former Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi following a speech he gave at the 2nd Organisation of the Islamic Conference meeting in Lahore in favour of Pakistan's right to pursue nuclear weapons. The stadium houses the headquarters of the Pakistan Cricket Board.
In 1995–96, the Gaddafi Stadium was renovated by architect Nayyar Ali Dada for the 1996 Cricket World Cup. Dada's redesign was done in the Mughal style, with red, hand-laid brickwork and arches. Dada also had plastic seating installed in place of the existing concrete benches. The lower portion under the stands was enclosed and converted to shops for boutiques and offices. Gaddafi Stadium was the first in Pakistan to be equipped with modern floodlights having their own standby power generators.
On 23 October 2011 the Pakistan Cricket Board discussed renaming the stadium following the death of Gaddafi, to support NTC and Libya. The Punjab Olympic Association made a similar request in late October 2011 to the provincial chief minister, telling Cricinfo:, "I don't think his profile is inspirational enough to link with our cricket stadium's identity." As of April 2012, however, it does not appear that the stadium's name will be changed after all.
Read more about this topic: Gaddafi Stadium
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