Horse Guards Volleyball Olympic Venue, London Sports Project, Design, Image

Horse Guards Volleyball Olympic Venue

Whitehall Sports Event, London, England, UK – design by Populous, architects

9 Aug 2011

Horse Guards Volleyball Venue London

Beach Volleyball Venue – Horse Guards Parade

The architect’s vision of the Beach Volleyball venue at London 2012 in Horse Guards Parade. View from the seating bowl with the iconic buildings of Whitehall, the London Eye and 10 Downing Street as a backdrop:

image © POPULOUS, Horse Guards Parade 2012 Olympic Beach Volleyball Venue

NEW IMAGE SHOWS BEACH VOLLEYBALL VENUE IN HORSE GUARDS PARADE FOR THE LONDON 2012 GAMES

London – 8 August 2011

The new image issued today by Populous, shows the architect’s vision of the Beach Volleyball venue as it will appear for the London 2012 Olympic Games. It is released ahead of the Visa FIVB Beach Volleyball International, on 9-14 August, at Horse Guards Parade, which will be an exciting rehearsal for the Olympic event next year.

Populous, the official architectural and overlay design services provider to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with 10 Olympic Games of experience in its portfolio and currently working on 35 of the London 2012 venues, has embraced the temporary nature of the venue at Horse Guards Parade to develop a truly unique stadium that incorporates the London historic architecture and skyline as a natural backdrop for the event.

Beach Volleyball has proved to be one of the most popular sports at the Olympic Games since its introduction in Atlanta in 1996. The setting in the iconic Horse Guards Parade venue, within an entirely temporary 15,000 outdoor seating arena – similar in size to Wimbledon Centre Court, positions it to be one of the most-sought after tickets events for the London 2012 Games. The stadium itself has been designed to create a ‘theatre in the round’ lower bowl that will provide a high energy atmosphere, and a three-sided upper bowl that will provide spectators and television audiences with an unrivalled view of the London skyline beyond.

Jeff Keas, Principal of Populous said, “The Olympics centre on a number of ideals regarding sport, art, culture and education. We’ve integrated these principles in our design approach to event architecture, so everyone from the athletes to the spectators will have a spectacular experience. We are bringing a new perspective to the field of play; we are showing the city in a way that you’ve never seen it before.”

Populous, together with Allies and Morrison and Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands, have taken particular care to ensure that the venue design fits in with the natural surroundings and is sympathetic to the heritage of the setting. Factors that have been taken into consideration include accessibility, noise, lighting, traffic, spectator experience and of course the requirements of the competitors themselves.

Jeff Keas commented, “As architects, we consider the cultural and design aspects of an event, alongside the operational and commercial. By taking a design-inclusive approach to temporary structures, we’re able to maximise user experience to create memorable places and spaces out of simple, tried and trusted products.”

The site will revert to its current use at the end of the Olympic Games.

Horse Guards Olympic Volleyball Venue images / information from Populous

Previously:

29 Oct 2010

Horse Guards Volleyball Venue

Populous and Atkins to transform London’s Horse Guards Parade into spectacular Olympic venue

Populous, the London 2012 stadium architect and official architectural and overlay design services provider for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and Atkins, the UK’s largest engineering and design consultancy, as the official engineering design services provider, will transform the iconic Horse Guards Parade into a spectacular Olympic venue for the Beach Volleyball competition, taking full advantage of its historic and central setting.

Horse Guards Parade has a long tradition of hosting celebrated events, from Henry VIII’s tournaments to the annual Trooping of the Colour, so it is fitting that it is being used as a venue for volleyball games during the London Olympic Games.

Horse Guards Volleyball Venue:

images from architects

The outdoor seating bowl with 15,000 seats will have lighting for evening competition, video and sport-specific fixtures. It has been designed as two distinct elements, a ‘theatre in the round’ lower bowl to provide a high energy atmosphere, and a three-sided upper bowl allowing the spectators and camera views to use the historic sites and London skyline beyond as a backdrop to the event.

The proposals outlined by the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (―LOCOG‖) today in their planning submission to Westminster City Council are the culmination of significant work by Populous and Atkins to address the inherent challenges of creating a stadium for 15,000 people, which will run well into the night, provide an unparalleled experience for competitors and spectators only weeks after the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and meet the exacting standards of the Olympic Games and the London 2012 sustainability goals.

Careful planning, design, engineering and attention to detail has been central to ensuring that the venue fits in well with its surroundings and is sympathetic to its context and setting. Factors that have been taken into consideration include accessibility, noise, lighting, traffic, spectator experience and the requirements of the competitors themselves.

The solutions provided include taking the standard components available for temporary stadiums and creating the same feeling of permanency as the main Games venues. Pre-existing modular components will be hired to create a bespoke court. In keeping with both Populous and Atkins low carbon ethos, following the Games the venue will be dismantled, leaving no trace on the location, and can be reassembled and used in other locations.

Although temporary, the structures will still need building regulations approval and will undergo the same rigorous safety tests.

Jeff Keas, Principal of Populous said, ―We have designed and will create a sporting arena where you would least expect it in the heart of historic London. In a six week period, Horse Guards Parade will not only be the venue for the pageantry and spectacle of Trooping of the Colour and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, but it will host Beach Volleyball for the 2012 Games.

The temporary structure itself is similar in size and scale to Wimbledon’s Centre Court – with a unique seating bowl that opens out to the city and will provide an amazing setting for Beach Volleyball.

Mike McNicholas, Atkins London 2012 Games project director said, ―This is a critical part of the work Atkins has been undertaking across the London Olympic project and in many ways one of the most visible. A location as prestigious and historical as Horse Guard’s Parade is a fantastic backdrop for any event, but presents additional questions that do not arise elsewhere. We are proud of the technical skills we have brought to bear and believe the temporary structure provides a solution that should be considered more broadly in the future.

James Bulley, LOCOG Director of Venues and Infrastructure, said, ―Whilst for many the emphasis of the Games will be at the Olympic Park in East London, our aim is for London to play a starring role in the Games. Populous and Atkins, through imaginative design and architectural construction have enabled LOCOG to use an historic landmark for a major tournament. We hope this will contribute to making London 2012 the best possible Olympic and Paralympic Games experience for everyone involved, ensuring a real legacy and inspiring people to join in.

Horse Guards Volleyball Olympic Venue images / information from Populous

Horse Guards Volleyball Venue design : Populous

Horse Guards Beach Volleyball

Location: Horse Guards Parade, central London, England, UK