BIRD’S NEST on Track

A beyond-unique landmark for August 2008’s Games has just been completed; the Beijing Olympic Stadium by Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron houses a 91,000-seat arena under its 12-metre-deep steel exoskeleton

FIVE YEARS OF CONSTRUCTION AND US$500 million later, the stadium nicknamed the “Bird’s Nest” because of its tightly woven lattice structure is set to inspire awe in both spectators and athletes. Radical yet simple, the complex, which also includes a futuristic aquatic centre, reveals a sustainable design: openings in its facade allow the stadium to benefit from natural ventilation, while sunlight filters down to feed the grass field.


Generation-next architecture inspired by nature: the Beijing Olympic Stadium’s steel exoskeleton will be filled with translucent inflated cushions to weatherproof the arena
PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES (MAIN PHOTO),
HERZOG DE MEURON (INSET)