2012 Olympic Aquatic Center Fast Facts
- The Zaha Hadid designed Aquatics Center is located in the south of the Olympic Park and will be the main Gateway into the Games', hosting Swimming, Diving, Synchronized Swimming, Water Polo finals and the swimming discipline of the Modern Pentathlon.
- The Aquatics Center will have a capacity of 17,500 during the Games, reducing to a maximum of 2,500 in legacy, with the ability to add 1,000 for major events, and provide two 50m swimming pools, a diving pool and dry diving area - facilities London does not have at present.
- Eleven industrial buildings have been demolished on the 55,000 sq m site.
- Around 160,000 tonnes of soil have been dug out of what was one of the more challenging and complex areas of the Olympic Park, contaminated with pollutants including petrol, oil, tar, solvents and heavy metals such as arsenic and lead.
- Four skeletons were discovered and removed from a prehistoric settlement discovered on the site of the Aquatics Center.
- 140,000 tonnes of clean soil has been brought from other areas of the Olympic Park to prepare for construction to start.
- Planning permission has been achieved and Balfour Beatty is building the Aquatics Center and huge land-bridge that forms the roof of the training pool and the main pedestrian access to the Olympic Park. Construction work will be complete in 2011 for test events ahead of the Games.
- The Aquatics Center has been designed by Zaha Hadid Architects working with Arup and S&P Pool architects.
- The river that runs alongside the venue has been widened by eight meter by building 550m of new river walls.
- The huge completed southern roof support is 9m high, 28m long, over 5m wide, using 850m³ of concrete.
- A 3,000 tonne concrete bridge has been built spanning and protecting the tunnels which have been dug to run powerlines beneath the site. The northwest roof support is being built on top of this base.
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