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New Venues for Beijing 2008 Olympic GamesThe 'Bird's Nest', 'Water Cube' and Other New Sports Facilities
Find out more about the new competition venues that have been specially constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
From 8 – 24 August 2008, world-class athletes representing their respective countries will gather in China to celebrate the Olympic spirit and compete to create new world records. Sporting action for the Beijing Olympics will take place in 37 different venues, of which 31 are located in Beijing. Of these, 12 are specially constructed for the Games. Location: The Olympic Green * National StadiumThe grand yet futuristic-looking edifice is the pièce de résistance of the Beijing Olympics. Designed by the Swiss architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron and the China Architecture Design Institute, its external façade comprises seemingly-random steel trusses that fuse together fluidly. Its appearance has earned it the nickname of ‘Bird’s Nest’, which also happens to be a culinary tradition among the locals. Covering 64 acres of land and with a seating capacity of 93,000, the stadium will host the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, as well as athletics/track and field events and the football finals match. * National Aquatics Center Located in the vicinity of the National Stadium, the ‘Water Cube’ (as it is known to the locals) will host the swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo competitions. Its bluish bubbly exterior was created using more than 100,000 square meters of a plastic known as Ethylene Tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE). Used for the first time in China, ETFE allows improved penetration of light and heat into the interior of the center, thereby reducing energy cost. * National Indoor StadiumWith a seating capacity of 19,000, this stadium will host the artistic gymnastics, trampoline and handball competitions. * Olympic Green Tennis Center This center contains six training and 10 competition courts for the tennis tournaments. Location: Haidian District * Wukesong Indoor StadiumThe basketball tournaments will be held in this stadium, which is part of the larger Wukesong Sports Center. The sports center also houses baseball fields and other commercial facilities. * China Agricultural University Gymnasium This venue is located in the East Campus of the university. It will host the wrestling competitions. * Peking University Gymnasium The table tennis competitions will be held in this gymnasium. It has a suspended steel lattice shell roof that spans 64 meters (dubbed the ‘China Ridge’), and is one of the more complicated roof structures among the various Olympic venues. The transparent sphere in the middle of the roof can be opened to provide natural lighting and ventilation. * University of Science and Technology Beijing Gymnasium The judo and taekwando competitions will be held here. Location: Shijingshan District * Beijing Shooting Range HallThis facility will host the qualifications and finals of the 10-, 25-, and 50-meter range shooting events. The first gold medal of the Beijing Olympics is likely to be awarded here. * Laoshan VelodromeThis state-of-the-art cycling facility contains China’s first wood-surface track, measuring 250 meters in length and 11 meters in width. The track is banked at between 13 degrees and 47 degrees, in accordance with the standards set by Union Cycliste Internationale. Location: MapoVillage, Shunyi District * Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park This competition venue will host the rowing, canoeing, kayaking (flat-water racing and Shalom racing) and 10-kilometer marathon swimming events. Location: Chaoyang District * Beijing University of Technology Gymnasium The badminton and rhythmic gymnastics competitions will take place here. Besides the 12 venues stated above, there are other competition venues in Beijing and six other Chinese cities.
The copyright of the article New Venues for Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in Summer Olympic Games is owned by Kris Lee Wai Loon. Permission to republish New Venues for Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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