Tokyo 2020 Stadium Breaks Ground

John Hill

13. dezembro 2016

Rendering of Kengo Kuma's design for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Stadium (Image courtesy of Japan Sports Council)

On Sunday, a groundbreaking ceremony was held in Tokyo for the $1.5 billion National Stadium that will serve as the main venue of the 2020 Olympic Games and the 2020 Paralympic Games.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Tokyo Governor Shinzo Abe, and other dignitaries were in attendance at the site of the demolished stadium that was used for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. At one point they placed their hands on a glass sphere whose surfaces shifted through the colors of the Olympics logo.

The ceremony ended with a video displaying how the stadium, designed by Kengo Kuma, will appear when it is completed in November 2019. As described by the International Olympic Committee, "Kuma ... opted for a wooden lattice design that echoes traditional styles seen in Japanese temples and pagodas. It is intended to blend in with surrounding parkland and will be structured to minimize heating costs."

Kuma was selected as the stadium's architect in December 2015, five months after Japan shelved Zaha Hadid's competition-winning design from 2012.