Building the Beijing 2022 Olympic Venues
On February 4 the 2022 Winter Olympic Games will debut in Beijing. The Olympics are known for displaying some of the greatest athletic achievements in the world, but it is also home to innovative stage designs and amazing spectacles. Let’s take a deeper look at Beijing’s sustainable approach to building this year's Winter Olympic Venues!
Beijing is the first city to host both a Summer and Winter Olympic Games. This created a unique opportunity for them to reuse several venues from the 2008 Beijing Summer Games and consequently develop a more sustainable structure.
Repurposed Venues
The 2008 Legacy Venue also known as the Birds Nest, the home of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, as well as athletic competitions in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games will be once again used as the venue for this year’s Opening and Closing Ceremonies. This stadium took 5 years to complete and came to a final cost of $423 million. This total comes with no surprise as the stadium is the largest steel structure ever built and one of the most complex stadiums ever completed in terms of engineering.
Number 2 on the list of repurposed venues is the National Aquatics Centre, once coined “The Water Cube,” is now known as “The Ice Cube”. Previously, the National Aquatics Centre hosted the swimming, diving, and synchronized swimming competitions. Now the repurposed venue will host the curling competition. After discovering the versatility of the venue, following the 2022 Olympic Games the space will continue to be used for both winter and summer sports depending on the season.
What used to host rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline, and handball back in 2008 will now be transformed into one of the venues hosting the ice hockey competition. The National Indoor Stadium or “The Fan” will be paired with the Wukesong Sports Centre which once hosted the basketball tournament in the 2008 Olympics but will now be the primary venue for the 2022 ice hockey competition.
Another example of venues being repurposed is the former venue for the volleyball tournament, the Capital Indoor Stadium. The stadium will now host the figure skating and short-track speed skating competition.
New Venues
On the Olympic Park, a major site constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics and a main area for the 2022 Olympic Games, only one new venue was built. The National Speed Skating Oval or “The Ice Ribbon” was built on the Olympic Green Hockey Field and Archery Field, to host this year’s speed skating competition.
Another interesting new build to add to the roster of venues is the Big Air Shougang, this venue will host the freestyle skiing and snowboard Big Air competitions. Before the competition has even started Beijing is breaking records by making this structure the world’s first permanent venue for Big Air. The Big Air Shougang is built on top of a former steel mill, with a height of 60m and a slope stretching 164m. The Big Air was made with versatility at the top of the builders’ minds, featuring 1,100 building blocks that allow it to quickly switch between two different tracks.
Keeping with the theme, the construction crew of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games continue to break records by making the first sliding track in China and the third in all of Asia. The National Sliding Center will host the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton competitions.
Snow-Making Process
Although Beijing may see its biggest snowfall ever this year, in preparation for the Olympics and to abide by the strict guidelines from the International Snow Federation regarding the hardness of the slopes, Beijing has undertaken an enormous snow-making project. The venues use automated snow-making systems that monitor air temperature and humidity to maximize production. To remain with their sustainable and eco-friendly theme for the 2022 Winter Olympics, organizers assure that the snow-making machines are powered by renewable energy so as to not damage the mountain's ecosystems, as well the automation of the systems will reduce human error that contributes to waste. Another major concern facing the snow-making process was extreme water usage, however, organizers added that snowmaking will be no threat to the water use of residents as it only accounts for less than 1% of the local water supply, and in the spring the snow will melt, and the water will return into the local reservoirs. Once the snow has been made, employees use snowcats to spread the snow onto the pistes and sculpt jumps and turns.
Notable Events
The Olympics are known for bringing some of the most talented and decorated athletes together all under one roof to compete. Here are a few athletes to keep an eye out for in the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
Mikaela Shiffrin - USA
Mikaela Shiffrin is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to alpine skiing. She is an Olympic double gold medalist and single silver medalist, followed by six world champion titles, 106 podiums, and 69 race wins at the World Cup.
Mikaël Kingsbury - Canada
Mikaël is the most decorated mogul skier of all time. He won a silver medal in the 2014 Winter Olympic Games and is the reigning champion from the 2018 Games. He holds the record for the most World Cup titles and World Cup victories in men’s moguls. In addition, of any male competitor in history, he has also won the most medals at the Freestyle World Championships.
Chloe Kim - USA
Not only is Chloe the reigning champion of the 2018 Olympic halfpipe competition, upon victory the 17-year-old broke records becoming the youngest woman ever to win an Olympic snowboarding gold medal. She is also a two-time world champion and holds six gold, one silver, and one bronze Winter X Games medals.
Beijing 2022 Olympic Venues
Planning, repurposing venues, and building new structures is no easy task. The Beijing Winter Olympic organizers did an amazing job executing their plans and we can’t wait to see all the amazing performances from the athletes at these incredible venues. Good luck to all participating and their supporters who are watching at home!
