STADIUM DESIGN At the same time that legacy was
considered, so too were construction methods and materials. Everyone agreed that the London stadium should touch the earth lightly and the team began to consider how to reduce the embodied energy necessary in construction. What emerged at the end of the design
process was a watershed in stadium design: a building that is flexible, light- weight and semi temporary, yet one that still makes a statement as the landmark stadium for the grand ceremonies of the London 2012 Games and is visible across the Olympic Park from all approaches. It is designed to be reconfigured after the Games into a smaller stadium for soccer and its seating configuration, arranged in an elliptical bowl form, will provide an intimate experience, allowing spectators to be as close as possible to the action. In my opinion, it is the most
environmentally-friendly Olympic stadium ever built – using less steel than any other comparable Olympic stadium. What steel is used is lightweight; the structure of
The 2012 Olympic stadium is a watershed in stadium design – flexible, lightweight and semi temporary, and yet a landmark
Combining global and local needs together with respect for the footprint these buildings can make on our environment is a key issue to the success of each design
the upper tier west stand and roof uses just 10,000 tonnes of steel. All the public bars, food concessions and information and retail points have been designed as individual pods, grouped together in villages outside the stadium. These are temporary facilities that can be removed, simplifying the services needed inside the stadium. It also has a roof made of fabric. A huge amount of energy goes into
the building of a stadium facility land while we must look for ways to reduce it, sometimes there are not a lot of options. For example there are obviously good reasons why you design a roof with steel rather than concrete. But the options increase if it’s possible to use fabric, and so we looked to fabric as a means of enclosing the London stadium. Vertical strips of fabric that twist by
ninety degrees as they approach ground level became the solution for the London roof enclosure. The twist allows an easy
flow of spectators in and out of the stands and this ‘wrap’ is printed on one side in a bold spectrum of colours. The stadium will be one of the fastest
buildings to transform from Olympic mode to a profitable, sustainable post Olympic venue. The construction methods and materials mean that the stadium was also built ahead of schedule. Construction began in 2008 and it was completed in March 2011. Populous’ partners on this project include contractor Sir Robert McAlpine and engineers Buro Happold.
MOVING FORWARD The lessons learned from London are now being translated into the design of the Olympic stadium for the Sochi 2014 Winter Games, which is the third Olympic stadium being designed by Populous. Populous was selected by the State
Corporation Olympstroy to design the masterplan and overlay for venues and facilities, and is joined in the design con- sortium by Russian contractor Engeocom, and Botta Management. The stadium, which will be completed
in 2012, will have a seat capacity of 32,000 in Olympic mode. However, its innovative design will enable it to be a suitable host for more than one major event and leave a long-term legacy. It was also designed with the flexibility
to transform and adapt to become a host venue for the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup, by using additional temporary seating to increase the capacity to 45,000.
52 SPORTS MANAGEMENT HANDBOOK 2012
www.sportsmanagementhandbook.com
PIC: ©POPULOUS
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132