Beijing National Aquatics Center, Olympic swimming complex in Chaoyang District, China.
The Beijing National Aquatics Center is a sports complex in Chaoyang District, China, built with more than six hundred translucent membrane panels forming a foam-like facade. The structure contains multiple swimming pools and a public water park spread across a large indoor area.
Construction began on 24 December 2003 after the "Water Cube" design won an international competition in July. The venue opened on 29 January 2008 and hosted swimming, diving and synchronised swimming at the 2008 Olympics, where 25 world records were broken. It was later converted for curling at the 2022 Winter Olympics, hosting its first curling event in December 2019.
The nickname Water Cube comes from the bubble-like ETFE cladding, though the building is a cuboid 178 metres square and 31 metres high. Since July 2013 its exterior carries the LED light show "Nature and Man in Rhapsody of Light" by artist Jennifer Wen Ma and lighting designer Zheng Jiawei, whose colours are set by emoji trends on Sina Weibo. Inside, a 12,000 m2 water park opened on 8 August 2010.
The main entrance sits on the east side of the Olympic Park, easily reached via wide pedestrian paths from the nearest subway exit. The building has multiple levels, with water park areas inside accessible through escalators and elevators.
The entire project received funding through donations from Chinese emigrants worldwide, with business leaders from Hong Kong contributing major sums. In winter, the building transforms into the Ice Cube, with specialized equipment installed to convert the swimming pools into ice rinks.
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