National Aquatic Centre

Venue: National Aquatics Center

Location: Olympic Green
Total land surface: 79,532 sq m
Seats: 6,000 permanent and 11,000 temporary
Competitions: Swimming, Diving, Synchronized Swimming
Groundbreaking date: December 24, 2003
Completion date: January 28, 2008

One of the dramatic venues of the 2008 Beijing Summer Games, the national Aquatic Centre will be hosting the swimming, synchronized swimming and diving events.

The National Aquatic Centre will be hosting the swimming, synchronized swimming competitions at the 2008 Beijing Summer Games. An architectural marvel of modern times, the National Aquatic Centre is popularly known as the Water Cube.


The National Aquatic Centre, Beijing was built by China Construction Design International, in partnership with PTW Architects of Australia. The total cost of the Water Cube was not made public though initially it was set at $ 100 million. Work on the National Swimming Centre, Beijing began on 24th December 2003 and was completed on 28th January 2008.

The Water Cube in Beijing has a capacity of 6,000 permanent seats and 11,000 temporary seats. It is located very close to the National Olympics Stadium, which is also known as ‘The Nest’, and is built over an area of 79,532 square meters. Made of concrete and steel, the National Aquatic Center in Beijing has a blue-toned outer skin made of a Teflon-like material called ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene or ETFE. This skin gives the effect of natural formation of soap bubbles. The inside of the stadium will also have the similar effect.

Swimming will be held from 9th-21st August, synchronized swimming from 18th-23rd August while diving will take place from 10th-23rd August at the National Aquatic Center of Beijing. A total of 44 events will take place during this period.

Once the 2008 Summer Olympics gets over, the Water Cube will be converted into a shopping center. Restaurants, nightclubs, tennis courts and a number of other activities will also come up.

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National Indoor Stadium

Venue: National Indoor Stadium
Location: Olympic Green
Total land surface: 80,900 sq m
Competitions: Artistic Gymnastics, Trampolines, and Handball
Post-Games use: The venue, one of the best sports facilities in Beijing, can be used for sports competition, cultural and entertaining purposes, and will serve as a multi-functional exercise center for local residents.
Groundbreaking date: May 28, 2005
The National Indoor Stadium will be the venue for handball, artistic gymnastics and trampoline during the 2008 Summer Games.
The National Indoor Stadium is one of the 31 venues that will be used during the 2008 Beijing Summer Games. This state-of-the-art venue will play host to Artistic Gymnastics, Trampolines and Handball events. The National Indoor Stadium of Beijing will hold the Wheelchair Basketball event of the Paralympics, to be held immediately after the 2008 Summer Olympics.

The National Indoor Stadium in Beijing is built over an area of 80,900 square meters and is located inside the Olympic Green zone. Construction began on this stadium on 28th May 2005 and was completed in October 2007. Handball will be held from 9th-24th August, Artistic Gymnastics from 9th-19th August while Trampoline will be held from 16th-19th August.

The National Indoor Stadium, Beijing has a capacity of 20,000 spectators, which is the biggest for any indoor stadiums in China. The steel roof truss of double bowstring is one of the characteristic features of this stadium. The National Indoor Stadium boasts of having the biggest span of steel truss in the world. The stadium also has solar generating, natural lighting and steel scoria backfilling.

Once the 2008 Summer Games gets over, the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing will be used for other purposes like cultural and entertainment programs as well as sporting competitions.

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Beijing National Stadium "Bird's Nest"

Beijing National Stadium facts:

Stadium Name: Beijing National Stadium
Address: Beijing National Stadium, Olympic Green, China
Built: 2007
Capacity: 91,000
Gross floor area: 2,58,000 m2
Structure: 36 km of unwrapped steel length
Height: 69.2 m above pitch level
Designer: Jaques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron along with Arup Sport and China Architecture Design & Research Group

The National Stadium (Olympic Green) is better known as Beijing National Stadium. The stadium is also known as the "Bird's Nest" due to it's amazing design. This National Stadium, Beijing, is the main track and field stadium for the Beijing Summer Games 2008. This stadium will host the opening and closing ceremonies of the twenty-ninth Summer Games. The stadium will be the venue of the athletics and football events during the Games. The National Stadium is being built at the intended location of the Guangdong Olympic Stadium. The stadium meets all the functional and technical requirements of an Olympic National Stadium.

Location of the Beijing National Stadium: The stadium is located at the Olympic Green in Beijing in the Chaoyang district. BaDaLing and JuYongGuan wall are the nearest part of the Great Wall of China from Beijing. Kempinski Beijing Lufthansa Center, Marriott Beijing Executive Apartments, Renaissance Beijing Hotel, Comfort Inn & Suites, Hotel Kunlun, Beijing Jing Gang Wan Hotel, Beijing Hua Tai Hotel are some hotels near the Beijing National Stadium in the Chaoyang district.

Description of the Beijing National Stadium: In 2002, Beijing Government officials held a design competition for architects all over the world to design the stadium for Summer Games 2008. Pritzker Prize winning architects Jaques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron in alliance with Arup Sport and China Architecture Design & Research Group won the competition. The construction of the stadium started in March, 2004 and is almost ready for hosting the Summer Games. The estimated cost in building this National Olympic Stadium comes to be around $500,000,000.

The Beijing National Stadium has a synergistic appearance. The superstructure has been made following the model designed. The only alteration is the omission of the roof in the new design. The structure of the stadium is built with 36 kilometer of unwrapped steel. The huge steel beams mutually support each other and converge into a grid-like formation. The formation looks like a bird's nest with the interwoven twigs. For this reason, the Beijing National Stadium is also known as the ‘Bird's Nest'. The stadium, in every sense, is the historical landmark for the Summer Games of 2008. The lobby of the stadium includes all the facilities – restaurants, suites, shops and restrooms. All these facilities are self-contained units in the stadium. The lobby functions like an arcade. The stands are divided in three tiers. The spacious ambulatory circles the stands.





Area and Capacity of the Beijing National Stadium: The Beijing National Stadium has a length of 330 meters, with the width of 220 meters. Height of the stadium is 69.2 meters above the pitch level. The gross floor area covered by the stadium will be 258,000 square meters. The capacity of the Beijing National Stadium is of 91,000 spectators during the Summer Games. However, after the games, the capacity will be reduced to 80,000 spectators. It is believed to be the world's largest enclosed space.

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