Designs unveiled to feature incorporation of venues with nature
A design for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games facilities in Yanqing district on the outskirts of Beijing was unveiled earlier this month, featuring the incorporation of the venues with the surrounding nature and the local environment, officials said.
The plan for the Yanqing competition zone — one of the three venue clusters for the 2022 Winter Olympics co-hosted by Beijing and Zhangjiakou, Hebei province — covers the National Alpine Ski Center, the National Sliding Center, the Yanqing Olympic Village and a media center in the mountainous area.
All the venues will be situated on the southern slopes of Xiaohaituo Mountain, 90 kilometers northwest of downtown Beijing.
By the end of this year, construction of the first half of the alpine ski center is scheduled for completion, along with 35 percent of the sledding facility, Beijing Daily quoted Yu Dequan, director of the Yanqing venues construction division of Beijing’s major projects office, as saying.
The construction of the Olympic Village and the media center will also start within this year, Yu added.
The National Alpine Ski Center is planned to have seven ski runs, totaling 21 kilometers long and with a vertical drop of roughly 900 meters. Once completed, it will be among the best alpine ski resorts in China, its designers said.
To reduce the impact on the local ecosystem, builders are using precast concrete to build the venues in Yanqing.
Prefabrication features assembling removable components of buildings. It can help to improve the quality and efficiency in construction and provide convenience in dismantling temporary facilities after the Games, such as the media office.
The National Sliding Center is designed with a major sheltered snowboarding track, the first one of its kind in China able to meet the requirements for an Olympic event.
The shelter structure will wind its way along the nearly 2,000-meter-long ice-covered track with 16 bends. It will serve to shield the track from the weather, shelter snowboarders from strong sunshine and help to reduce energy consumption, designers said.
The Yanqing Olympic Village will be built in the traditional village courtyard style of northern China. Tucked into the forest, the facility will be equipped with 1,430 beds. After the Games, it will be turned into a skiingthemed holiday resort.
Nearby villages will be preserved to showcase the local rural culture and customs in northern China. Villagers will have the opportunity to work as volunteers during the Games.
Li Xinggang, chief designer of the Yanqing zone, told Beijing Youth Daily that the development in the area won’t destroy the local landforms.
“No landmarks stand out in the Yanqing zone,” Li said. “If there were any, they will be well preserved.”
Back in 2015, experts on forestry, water resources and ecological protection rolled out stringent and detailed environmental standards for the Yanqing zone, after thorough research.
At the construction sites in Yanqing, removed surface soil is being well preserved to fill in and restore the landforms in the future.
Passageways specially designed for wild animals to pass through so as to prevent their habitat from being disturbed have also been included in the plan.
The Yanqing zone will use clean energy on a large scale, such as solar and wind power, as well as a recycled water treatment network.
After the Games, the venues in Yanqing will remain as a large Winter Olympicsthemed park, aimed at becoming a popular tourist destination. In winter, the sports facilities will host toplevel international competitions and serve as a training center. Some of them will be open to the public.
Artist rendering of the National Sliding Center and the Yanqing Olympic Village.