OLYMPIC ICON
Location Beijing, China Client Beijing State Asset Management Operator Beijing National Speed Skating Oval Management Architects Populous - APAC HQ AU – Brisbane QLD 4000 www.populous.com Author Populous Photos Populous NSSO Official opening 2021 50
NATIONAL SPEED SKATING OVAL (NSSO) IN BEIJING The only new permanent 12,000-seat venue built for Beijing 2022 is the National Speed Skating Oval (NSSO), which was the main venue for the speed skating competition and will become a community sport and training venue after the Games. The “Ice Ribbon“ was designed by global sports architecture firm Populous as a symbol of cultural heritage that celebrates the elegance, precision, pace and dynamic of speed skating. Sitting together as iconic buildings along the central axis of the Beijing Olympics’ Bird’s Nest and the Water Cube venues, the Ice Ribbon brings an international landmark to Beijing and enhances the landscape and urban fabric of the area. Following the Games, the design’s legacy allows the transformation of the facility to serve its long-term purpose as a real hub for the community, for the holding of winter festivals, public ice skating, ice hockey or private ice-based shows and events.
From the memories of an “old Beijinger” A childhood memory of a traditional winter game in Beijing provided much of the inspiration for the conceptual design for the NSSO’s Ice Ribbon. The game was “ice tops” and the memory was that to Tiric Chang, Principal of Populous in China and the co-project director of NSSO. The traditional ice game in old Beijing involved a high-speed spinning and leaping ice top that seemed to have infinite energy and possibilities. sb 2/2022
