The water cube

Water cube (National Swimming Center) is located in Beijing Olympic Park, one of the landmark buildings of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, with a total construction area of about 100000 square meters.

During the 2008 Olympic Games, the national swimming center undertook swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and other competitions, resulting in 42 Olympic gold medals. After the Olympic Games, the swimming center can not only undertake major water competitions (such as the Paralympic Games, world swimming and Diving Championships) and all kinds of conventional events, but also is a multi-functional international fashion center with international advanced level, integrating swimming, sports, fitness and leisure, providing good basic conditions for citizens to strengthen their body.

National Swimming Center

synonym

Water cube generally refers to the National Swimming Center

National Swimming Center, also known as "Water Cube", is located in Beijing Olympic Park. It is the main natatorium built by Beijing for 2008 Summer Olympic Games and one of the landmark buildings of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

Its design scheme is the "Water Cube" (3) scheme produced by the global design competition. It and the National Stadium (commonly known as the bird's Nest) are located on both sides of the north end of Beijing's central axis, forming a relatively complete image of Beijing as a historical and cultural city.

The planned construction land of the National Swimming Center is 62950 square meters, with a total construction area of 65000-80000 square meters. The construction area of the underground part is not less than 15000 square meters, and the length, width and height are 177m × 177m × 30m respectively.

During the 2008 Olympic Games, the national swimming center undertakes swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, water polo and other competitions. It can accommodate 17000 spectator seats, including 6000 permanent spectator seats. During the Olympic Games, 11000 temporary seats will be added (to be removed after the games). After the competition, it will become an international advanced center integrating swimming, sports, fitness and leisure

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Architectural features

The National Swimming Center is one of the main venues for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, and also one of the landmark buildings for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

With the international level of facilities and visibility, there are more than 500000 consumer groups around, convenient and fast traffic conditions of the Subway Olympic Extension, professional companies with rich experience in stadium operation selected through international bidding, as well as business projects with outstanding characteristics, and adjacent large-scale cultural and sports facilities, which will have great significance in the operation after the games Obvious competitive advantage. The water cube and the bird's nest have become new landmarks in Beijing.

Building information

Number of seats: 4000 (permanent), 2000 (removable), 11000 temporary

Construction cost: About 1.02 billion yuan

Owner: Beijing state owned Assets Management Co., Ltd

Design Institute: CSCEC Design Consortium, PTW architectural design firm of Australia and Arup Arup Arup Engineering Consulting Co., Ltd

Architectural design unit: architectural acoustics and Interior Design Institute of Beijing Tsinghua Tongheng planning and Design Institute Co., Ltd

Construction unit: China Construction First Bureau Construction Development Co., Ltd

Historical evolution

In July 2003, the architectural design scheme of the National Swimming Center was officially determined.

On December 24, 2003, the foundation earthwork and foundation treatment works of water cube were started.

On April 7, 2004, the earthwork and foundation treatment works were completed.

On July 17, 2004, the general contract for the construction and installation of the National Swimming Center was officially signed.

In the first quarter of 2005, the construction of all main concrete structures was completed.

On April 10, 2006, the main structure of the National Swimming Center was capped and the steel structure was installed.

On June 16, 2006, the steel structure support system was successfully unloaded.

On August 1, 2006, the first membrane air cushion was installed in the membrane structure of National Swimming Center.

On December 26, 2006, the installation of membrane structure was completed.

In March 2007, the installation of the equipment was completed and online debugging started.

It was officially completed on January 28, 2008.

From January 31, 2008 to February 5, 2008, the 2008 "good luck Beijing" China swimming open was held.

From February 19, 2008 to February 25, 2008, he held the 16th "good luck Beijing" fina Diving World Cup.

From April 16, 2008 to April 20, 2008, the 2008 "good luck Beijing" Olympic synchronized swimming qualification competition will be held.

In August 2018, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games ice project was undertaken, and the renovation scheme has been initially formed.

On December 26, 2018, the National Swimming Center officially began to transform, starting a gorgeous turn to the "ice cube". After the transformation, the National Swimming Center will add curling venue function in the competition hall to meet the needs of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games and winter Paralympic Games.

At the same time, a new underground ice rink will be added in the South Square to serve the masses on ice fitness and popularize curling. The permanent facilities of the venue will be reconstructed in July 2020 to meet the needs of holding the Winter Olympic test events.

On the evening of August 30, 2019, the opening ceremony of the 2019 basketball world cup will be held at the National Swimming Center. The preparatory work for the opening ceremony lasts more than one year, and the opening ceremony lasts 60 minutes, which is divided into 15 minutes for the ceremony and 45 minutes for the performance.

Venue design

The design scheme of the National Swimming Center is the "Water Cube" (3) scheme produced by the global design competition. The design embodies the design concept of "Water Cube". The National Swimming Center is constructed, managed and operated by Beijing state owned assets management company. It started construction at the end of 2003, completed and put into trial operation before the end of 2007, and accepted the inspection and acceptance of the International Swimming Federation and the International Olympic Committee. "Water Cube" is the National Swimming Center of Beijing Olympic Games. Its membrane structure is the best in the world. It is designed according to the arrangement of cells and the natural structure of soap bubbles. This form has never appeared in the architectural structure, and the creativity is very strange.

Design materials

The wall and roof of "Water Cube" are divided into internal and external three layers. Designers have designed more than 30000 steel components using three-dimensional coordinates, which are jointly completed by Chinese and Australian designers. None of the more than 30000 steel components is the same in location. These technologies are the scientific and technological achievements of our country's independent innovation, and they fill the gap in the history of world architecture.

Design concept

"Water Cube" is located on the west side of area B of the Olympic Park, across the road from the National Stadium "bird's nest". The construction scale is about 80000 square meters, and the most attractive is the bubble like ETFE membrane (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene copolymer). ETFE film is a kind of transparent film, which can bring more natural light to the venue. Its interior is a multi-storey building, with symmetrical grandstands and wide field of vision. The milky white building in the pavilion and the blue pool are in contrast. ETFE film can also prevent fire, and it will be extinguished after leaving the fire. The design scheme adopted by the National Swimming Center is the "Water Cube" scheme which stands out in the global design competition. The scheme is jointly designed by China State Construction Engineering Corporation, PTW Architects of Australia and Arup Arup Engineering Consulting Co., Ltd. Among them, Chinese designers: China Construction International (Shenzhen) Design Consulting Co., Ltd.: Zheng Fang, the first designer of water cube scheme, Zhao Xiaojun, President and chief architect of the company, Mao Hongwei, chief engineer of HVAC, etc., and two assistant designers of PTW architectural firm are John Pauline and Toby Wong.

The design embodies the design concept of "Water Cube", which integrates architectural design and structural design. It is novel in design and unique in structure. It is more coordinated with the National Stadium. It fully meets the requirements of the 2008 Olympic Games in function and is easy to operate after the games.

Design source

This seemingly simple "square box" is built by Chinese traditional culture and modern science and technology. The Chinese believe that there is no square without rules. If we follow the established rules, we can achieve overall harmony and unity. In Chinese traditional culture, the design idea of "round sky and round place" gives birth to "Water Cube", which echoes and complements the circular "bird's nest" - National Stadium. Square is the most basic form of ancient Chinese urban architecture, which embodies the social life rules represented by the ethics of the code of ethics in Chinese culture. And this "square box" can reflect the multi-functional requirements of the National Swimming Center, thus realizing the perfect combination of traditional culture and architectural functions.

In Chinese culture, water is an important natural element and stimulates people's happy mood. The National Swimming Center will become the largest water park in Beijing after the competition, so the designers will explore various forms of entertainment that water can provide for people of all ages

Chinese PinYin : Shui Li Fang