Beijing National Stadium

• Olympic Games 2008
• Summer 2008 Paralympics
• World Athletics Championships 2015

The National Stadium (国家 体育场chinese /国家 体育场, Pinyin guojia tǐyùchǎng, colloquially also due to the architecture "Bird's Nest " ) is opened on 18 April 2008 Olympiastadion the 2008 Summer Olympic Games and Paralympic Summer Games in Beijing in 2008. It is part of the Olympic Green ( Olympic Park ). During the Olympic Games track and field competitions, the finals of the football tournament as well as the opening and closing ceremonies were held in the stadium.

Design

The Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, who already built the Allianz Arena in Munich and the Basel's St. Jakob- Park, designed the National Stadium. In cooperation with the China Architecture Design & Research Group, ArupSport and contemporary artist Ai Weiwei they emerged in 2002 as the winner of an international architectural competition. The building is 330 meters long, 220 meters wide and 69.2 meters high. The construction costs amount to around 3.5 billion yuan ( 325 million euros ). Due to its shape, the stadium has been nicknamed the "Bird's Nest ". Jacques Herzog hopes that " this building for Beijing which is what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris ."

Construction work

The building was built by the Chinese company CITIC Group. The first sod was in December 2003, the actual construction began in March 2004. Already in August 2004, the work due to massive cost overruns, partly due to the increase in steel prices, for a half year were interrupted. After a redesign was on the transparent roof, which should span the entire stadium, waived. The stadium has now in the middle of an approximately 185 times 122 m large open oval on.

The outer shell of the stadium is a 42,000 -ton intricate steel framework that arose from thousands of ready-made items. They each weighed up to 350 tonnes and were made ​​in steel mills in Shanghai about 1,000 kilometers away. To reduce the stresses caused by temperature variations, the outer sheath of the stadium is separated from the core.

Use

During the Olympics, the stadium had a capacity of 91,000 spectators, which was reduced to 80,000 after the event. Thus, the construction can be operated economically after the Olympic Games and continues to attract visitors, according to planning and restaurants, offices and shops are provided.

Criticism of the construction project

Ai Weiwei overlooking the Pacific thoughts, which he pursued with the design of the Olympic Stadium, ignored by the government. Not only that the project has cost almost twice as much as planned is not been to Ais sense. Ai, the opponents of the Chinese government, sees himself as a puppet. A puppet which was only used to make predictions in the propaganda program. According to Ai Weiwei, the government uses to manipulate certain Chinese artists and celebrities around the world and the Chinese people. With the construction of the stadium Ai created so to speak, a building for the party, the people oppressed by their censorship and has a dubious reputation. This is in contrast the idea that the "Bird's Nest " to stand for freedom and an open China.

In his column for the English The Guardian Ai speaks of the terms, courage, strength and freedom. Those are to be expressed by the Olympic Stadium. Thus he also pursued logically the Olympic spirit of fairness. Ai says Herzog & de Meuron and he would have received the encouragement in an honest way and therefore he saw hope that China would continue to open up and would be fairer. In his view, according to the Chinese government is using the Olympics but much more, to demonstrate their own strength. You do not want to celebrate moral values ​​such as freedom and fairness. But you want can be celebrated and celebrated as the ruler of the country and the economic miracle. The needs of the people play a subordinate role.

Behavior that Ai is not accepted and thus waived the invitation to the opening ceremony and the Olympic Games boycotted. This brought on a new Ai in the headline of the press to which he even said he would regret the participation in the construction of the Olympic Stadium.

Documentary

• Bird 's Nest - Herzog & de Meuron in China - Documentary, France, Switzerland, 2008, 86 min, directed by. Christoph Schaub, Michael Schindhelm, Production: T & C Film, arte, SSR, Air Date 11 August, 2008 The documentation accompanying the work of Herzog & de Meuron since the announcement of the competition from 2002 until the fall of 2007. Formally treated the film "building between two cultures, two architectural traditions, two political systems ." Specifically, it is about the problems that had to be mastered at each stage by the Basel architects Herzog & de Meuron, in the construction of the Olympic Stadium. In addition, the film also tells the efforts to establish a new city district in Jinhua.

Awards

2009 was awarded the Beijing Olympic Stadium the IOC / IAKS Gold Award, the only international architecture prize for facilities already in operation sports and leisure facilities ( new construction, expansion or modernization ).