Category: 2012 London

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London 2012; Transformation Olympic Stadium (7) – New roof takes shape

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Screencaps: Webcam West Ham United FC / Lobster Vision

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London 2012; Building the London Olympic Stadium’s new roof

Photo: Webcam West Ham United FC / Lobster Vision
Photo: Webcam West Ham United FC / Lobster Vision

The BBC has been allowed inside London’s Olympic Stadium to film the construction of the arena’s new roof.

Read full article / watch the video: BBC News

 

 

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London 1908-2012; Diving venues

© International Olympic Committee (IOC) 

 

1908 Diving venue: White City Stadium

An entirely novel feature is the swimming bath, a rectangle of 100 metres by 50 feet, with a depth at each end of 4 feet 6 inches, and a middle depth of 12 feet 6 inches. There is a collapsible tower of the regulation height to allow of high-diving competitions. The arena is surrounded by a stand with accommodation for 70,000 spectators, and provides dressing rooms, lavatories, etc., for the competitors in the games.

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One of the chief elements in the success of the swimming events at the Olympic Games of London was the fact that the swimming bath in which they took place was, for the first time in the history of these Games, constructed in the same arena which was used for the other important international competitions. For the plan of construction of this bath, and more especially for the original design of the tower for high diving, the hearty thanks of the British Olympic Council and of all international swimmers are due to Mr. William Henry, Chief Secretary of the Royal Life Saving Society. The tower was let down beneath the surface of the water when not required for diving and raised again in a few minutes according to the necessities of the programme.

Source: 1908 Summer Olympics official report (read)
 

1948 Diving venue: Empire Pool

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2012 Diving venue; London Aquatics Centre

© Martijn Giebels / AotG
© Martijn Giebels / AotG

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London 2012; Transformation Olympic Stadium (6) – Construction new roof begins

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Screencaps: Webcam West Ham United FC / Lobster Vision

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London 2012; Revised Stadium Contract

© Martijn Giebels / AotG
© Martijn Giebels / AotG

 

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REVISED STADIUM CONTRACT

In January 2014, Balfour Beatty was awarded a contract to transform the former Olympic Stadium, which included installing the largest single span cantilever roof in the world, constructing the warm-up track, spectator and hospitality facilities, and external landscaping.

This will deliver a multi-use sporting venue ready to host five matches during Rugby World Cup 2015, be the permanent home of West Ham United Football Club from 2016, and the new national competition stadium for athletics in the UK, hosting regional and national age group championships. It will also host elite international events, including the annual IAAF Diamond League meeting, 2017 IAAF World Championships and 2017 IPC World Athletics Championships.
The Stadium will be used for other sporting, cultural and community events as well as a being a high quality facility for local residents. A new community athletics track will also be provided next to the main Stadium, funded by the London Marathon Trust.

This is a unique two year transformation project and a hugely complex engineering scheme, using techniques previously employed on oil rigs. Providing adequate support for the new roof has required significantly more strengthening work to the main roof truss, which was originally designed to be taken down after the Games. We have therefore today agreed to increase the value of the Balfour Beatty contract by £35.9m to £189.9m.

We will meet these costs from the project contingencies and additional income we will generate from our other developments. There will therefore be no additional call on the taxpayer and no impact on our current programme. We will continue to deliver the most successful Olympic legacy in the history of the Games. We are committed to creating a new heart for east London with new jobs and homes, alongside iconic sporting venues and beautiful parklands.

STADIUM FACTS & FIGURES

  • The Stadium will be the permanent home of West Ham United Football Club from 2016 and the new national competition stadium for UK Athletics.
  • The venue will host five matches as part of Rugby World Cup 2015 as well as the 2017 IAAF World Championships and 2017 IPC World Athletics Championships, the first time these prestigious global events have been staged in the same venue in the same year.
  • At around 45,000sq metres and 84m at its deepest point, the new roof will be the longest cantilevered roof in the world, covering every seat in the Stadium and improving the acoustics and spectator experience.
  • A new floodlit 400m six-lane (eight on the straights) community athletics track will be built next to the main Stadium. This will be used by the local community, local and regional athletics clubs and also as a warm-up track for elite events within the Stadium.
  • The Stadium will meet UEFA Category 4 classification and will be a fully compliant IAAF Category 1 athletics facility.
  • The Stadium will house a mixture of facilities including changing rooms, press and media facilities, general back-of-house areas such as catering and preparation kitchens and storage space, as well as areas that will be converted for educational and community use.
  • 5,500 tonnes of steel and 6km of cabling are being used in the transformation of the Stadium.
  • 5,000 people will have worked two million hours once the Stadium transformation is complete. The peak workforce is expected to reach 500 workers on site with over 30 apprentices also being recruited from the local area.
  • Work began on 20 November 2013 to remove the Stadium’s 14 floodlight panels in preparation for the new roof.
  • The new Stadium design will have 54,000 seats. This will include:
    • Innovative retractable seating to allow closer pitch-side football views, while retaining an international class running track
    • 428 wheelchair user accessible viewing spaces and 529 easy access seats in athletics mode (these are also the maximum numbers for concert mode which is dependent on stage layouts)
    • 253 wheelchair user accessible viewing spaces and 540 easy access seats in football mode
    • 3,600 corporate hospitality seats
    • A range of boxes and lounges.
  • The new football pitch will be 105m x 68m – the same size as Wembley Stadium, the Emirates, the Etihad and Old Trafford.
  • There will be 995 toilets, 35 catering outlets and over 90 turnstiles, as well as a new club store and ticket office.
  • Sustainable construction methods are being used in the Stadium’s transformation, including recycling features of the Games-time Stadium into the new design and the re-use of crushed demolition material.
  • One year on from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Stadium reopened for the finish of the National Lottery Newham London Anniversary Run, where 12,500 competitors were able to follow in the footsteps of their London 2012 heroes watched by 30,000 spectators.
  • Between 26 and 28 July 2013, the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games were held in the Stadium to mark the anniversary of the London 2012 Opening Ceremony.

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Source: www.queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk