On last nights Newsnight they had an item on what London 2012 could learn from Wembley.

They started off by saying that a lot of people think we can't do it after Wembley, The Dome and the Scottish Parliament fiasco - but then went on to report that, unlike those projects, London 2012 is going to be based more on what's going on a Heathrow T5 - which is coming in on Budget and on time.

The main difference between Wembley and T5 seems to be about Risk Management. Traditionally, the government has always passed on as much risk as possible to the builders - which then leads to a blame game if something goes wrong. At T5, BAA have accepted all the risks themselves - which means if something does go wrong, they don't waste time and money trying to work out who's fault it is - they just get on with putting it right.

excellent post dronkula,

the London Olympics also has some good people behind it, the man behind the constuction of Ascot has also been recruited as well. The problem with the UK is the media ignore the success stories and concentrate on the negatives.

There is huge time and effort being put into risk management at the ODA. Big news coming up next week...

My future job. Risk management. :)

Published 13 March 2007 at 11:34
Five small firms shortlisted for key Olympic work

Five up-and-coming practices have been shortlisted to design a key public walkway intended to run through the 2012 Olympic Park.
The scheme is one of very few design competitions within the east London Olympic Park, and is a massive opportunity for smaller firms to showcase their work during the Games.

The shortlisted practices are: Adams and Sutherland, Alison Brooks Architects, Erect Architecture, Kinnear Landscape Architects and PLUS.

The shortlist comes as welcome news after it was announced recently that up-and-coming firms will have little chance to get involved in some of the smaller infrastructure projects ( Blow to small practices as Olympic work goes to contractors ).

The scheme is a 3km public walkway called the Greenway, which will run from Hackney’s Victoria Park to West Ham. The five shortlisted teams will be invited to a site visit by members of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) design team, and will then be interviewed and asked to discuss their designs.

ODA design director Alison Nimmo said: ‘We have been extremely pleased with the level of interest for this important project, particularly from small niche design practices.

‘This is an important project to revitalise a vital link in the neglected public spaces in and around the Olympic Park area. It will give the right designer the opportunity to use the creativity and imagination to support the regeneration in this area of London.’

The first section of the pathway will be open to the public in 2008, with full completion expected in 2010.

by Richard Vaughan

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c0/The_Greenway_East_London.jpg

A whole barrage of new renderings of the Park have appeared.

During the Games:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/181/419920518_757ae2b1a9_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/182/419909544_8b65425db7_o.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/127/419909551_9c8be03f1a_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/148/419909560_58e729de2c_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/156/419909568_ca908a224c_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/124/419909571_53272eefbd_b.jpg

Legacy Mode:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/123/419909575_788b096f4a_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/169/419917699_71fc039196_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/165/419917701_4763224ccb_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/167/419917706_3ad7683d47_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/130/419917716_8382b42f59_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/127/419917724_6a75dac6ea_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/161/419920513_2c802e1785_b.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/126/419920515_9556b4684f_b.jpg

wow! I went to the olympics in Athens and the olympic park was like a dusty car park. These pictures show quite the opposite!

Yes, it really does look beautiful.
Why didn't they use Wimbledon for the tennis?

Why didn't they use Wimbledon for the tennis?

They are, but Wimbledon is unsuitable for the Paralympic events, so they are building a special dedicated new paralympic tennis centre within the Olympic Park for these events. Also it gives East London a tennis legacy, which wouldn't happen if these events were in West London.

Wimbledon is undergoing a makeover and the Centre Court will have a roof installed in time for 2012.

when is the stadium design going to be unvieled? are there any dates?
and what is it with air ships and balloons in architects visions!?? do you think they are taking the piss?

The stadium design will be unveiled in the next couple of months. Big news regarding the Olympics tomorrow.

Wow! In the next couple of months! I didn't realise it'd be that soon.

Big news regarding the Olympics tomorrow.

Cue the usual media moaners, even though it's very good news.

AJPlus.co.uk
Published 15 March 2007 at 11:35
Firms vie to build Zaha’s Olympic Aquatics Centre

Construction firms have been ordered up to the starting blocks in the competition to build Zaha Hadid’s 2012 Olympic Aquatics Centre.
The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has issued an OJEU contract notice for constructing the east London venue.

It is also inviting bids for several unconfirmed projects, including a temporary water-polo venue, landscaping and a permanent plaza.

Hadid’s scheme has been radically overhauled since first being unveiled. It now has a roof just over a third of the size of the original proposals – the new structure will cover 14,000m2 compared to the 35,000m2 envisaged in the competition-winning design. (Zaha reveals radical changes to Olympic Aquatic Centre).

Another loss is the unusual wave-like dip in the roof form, which was a key characteristic of the original design.

Launching the construction competition, ODA boss David Higgins said: ‘This is an opportunity for a major construction company to build a world-class London 2012 venue fit for the best athletes in the world and a lasting legacy.’

He added: ‘The Aquatics Centre will form a spectacular gateway to the Olympic Park from Stratford. After the Games it will become a new landmark for London, a new home for UK swimming and a new swimming and fitness facility for local people.’

Work is already under way clearing and excavating the site. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2008 in time for training and test events in 2011.

by Clive Walker

And the big news is that the Olympic Budget has risen from £2.5bn 2005 to £9.3bn!

And the big news is that the Olympic Budget has risen from £2.5bn 2005 to £9.3bn!

An Olympic budget being revised upwards two years after it won its bid?

Shocking. I would never have seen that coming.

Lest not forget that a big chunk of this bill is VAT, Security costs, hardly the olympics fault.

I sense the media are trying their best to make this the new millenium dome, ie destroy it before it has even started.

I love the UK but the media are so negative.

Blimey, wasn't expecting that much of a rise! But, as long as the long term benifits eventually outweigh the budget, I'm still ok with it.

Yes Zim. Even more important is the fact that £2.7 billion is simply contigency spending - it will only be spent if things get worse: This money doesn't neccessarily have to be spent. The cost has gone up mainly in this sector but also regeneration - the original justification for the Olympics coming to London.

I sense the media are trying their best to make this the new millenium dome, ie destroy it before it has even started.

The negativity in this country simply just astounds me.

I also hate the negativity in the media, always nitpicking and looking for scandal, but never reporting the good things as they're 'boring' :ohno:

If you wondered on what they will spend the money, well here is another project that will be a true regeneration benefit:

from www.transportbriefing.co.uk

£104m Stratford station upgrade gets green light
Filed 16/03/07

The Olympic Delivery Authority has approved a £104m upgrade of Stratford regional station. Work on the project, which will be funded and managed by the ODA, will begin this summer with contractors moving on site in August.

Detailed designs for the scheme have been completed by Transport for London, on behalf of Network Rail, the Department for Transport and the ODA, which has reimbursed TfL.

Further work will include installing nine new lifts to make all platforms fully accessible, reopening a disused subway to create additional access to platforms and easy interchanges, a new westbound Central Line platform, widening of other platforms to increase passenger capacity and construction of two new entrances.

The upgrade will complement other transport projects affecting Stratford station, including the conversion of a section of the North London Line to Docklands Light Railway operation. This involves providing new platforms for the remaining North London Line connection, which will give passengers direct access to the upper level of the ticket hall.

Stratford regional station is one of the busiest interchanges outside central London, with around 37,000 passengers travelling through the station during an average three-hour morning peak period. The upgrade will significantly increase capacity during peak periods to accommodate growing demand, including the additional 63,000 spectators expected to use the station during the 2012 Games.

ODA chief executive David Higgins said: "An enhanced Stratford station is an important part of our transport plans for the Games which will help transform the Lower Lea Valley into one of the best connected areas in the capital.

"Increasing passenger capacity and creating a station that is fully accessible for all are at the heart of the plans we have developed with TfL, Network Rail and the DfT. There is now the green light to take this important scheme forward and help create a lasting legacy of world-class transport links for east London."

Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, added: "Thanks to our staging the 2012 Games, this upgrade will give Stratford a state of the art regional station consistent with its emergence as an international destination."

Work on the project is due to be completed in late 2010.

Richard Rogers Partnership won't be designing any of the main buildings on the olympic site.

Rogers pulls out of Olympic velopark

16 March, 2007

Richard Rogers Partnership has ruled itself out of any large venues at the 2012 games

Richard Rogers Partnership (RRP) has pulled out of the race to design the Olympic velopark and has ruled out involvement in any other large venues for the 2012 Games.

The firm, which originally bid for the velopark last year, said the design-and-build procurement route for the venues and a heavy workload meant it would not pitch for any high-profile schemes.

RRP had been shortlisted for a competition to design the velopark last year. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) then decided to move the velodrome inside the Olympic park and retender the work.

A source at the firm said: “If the procurement process for the venues was different and if last year’s competition had gone through we may have been involved, but now we don’t think we will be.”

The news will be a blow to the ODA, which is trying to reassure critics that design will be at the heart of the Games.

RRP has been linked to homes in the Olympic village. Developer First Base was recently confirmed as part of the preferred consortium for the village and is understood to be in talks with Rogers, Allford Hall Monaghan Morris and Glen Howells.

• The ODA has invited proposals from parties interested in taking over the Olympic media centre after the Games are over.

USA will win the most medals @ the 2012 olympics....we own the olympics!!!!!
GO USA GO.

USA will win the most medals @ the 2012 olympics....we own the olympics!!!!!
GO USA GO.

Yeah, you win the most medals.

But your piss-poor at hosting them:)

I suspect China will get the most medals in Beijing, and increase their lead in 2012...

I suspect China will get the most medals in Beijing, and increase their lead in 2012...

China lmaoooooooo hahaha...very funny...just because you host the event dont mean you will win the most medals..unless ur the united states...there are only few sports china will win gold medals in ...are the chinese good in track? no....football? no....basketball? no....swimming? no...only in diving...
Track&field & swimming produces the most medals....and the chinese are not even good at it.
America will once again dominate the olympics like we have always done.

Yeah, you win the most medals.

But your piss-poor at hosting them:)

How are we poor @ hosting them?

How are we poor @ hosting them?

Can somebody report this twat to a mod & get him banned- Not only has his puerile, infantile comments wasted to much time & space in the 2018 thread , hes now doing the same in this thread.

USA will win the most medals @ the 2012 olympics....we own the olympics!!!!!
GO USA GO.

didn't take long for this dickhead to find another thread to talk shit in.

^^ guys calm down

I wish London all the best in 2012...but i expect U.S to dominate the olympics in 2012 just like we will dominate 2008. I predict atleast 45 golds for u.s in the 2008 olympics and 50 golds in 2012.

Atlanta '96 is considered the worst Olympics in modern history.

I liked atlanta 96, it was the first olympics i watched and i was only about 10. My interests were in the events and the excitement it created, and at that age i wasn't interested in the politics or commercialism behind it, which was probably the best state of mind to be in looking back. It would be great to think like that now, with the sports and the participants from across the globe being the focus. It's a shame that some people want other issues to overshadow such a fantastic world event.

Well I was only 9 when Atlanta 1996 happened so wasn't too fussed about it, but when looking back on it now it does look appalling. Excessive corporate sponsorship and their Olympic Stadium was an peculiarly shaped one because it was just a converted baseball stadium! :lol:

Plus a bomb went off...

I wish London all the best in 2012...but i expect U.S to dominate the olympics in 2012 just like we will dominate 2008. I predict atleast 45 golds for u.s in the 2008 olympics and 50 golds in 2012.


name the events that you expect to get 45 gold medals from?

Well I was only 9 when Atlanta 1996 happened so wasn't too fussed about it, but when looking back on it now it does look appalling. Excessive corporate sponsorship and their Olympic Stadium was an peculiarly shaped one because it was just a converted baseball stadium! :lol:

Actually it was an olympic stadium it was converted to a baseball stadium later on.

name the events that you expect to get 45 gold medals from?

15 golds from swimming
15 golds from Athletics
2 golds from basketball (men & women)
1 gold from beach volleyball
1 gold from women football
3 gold from gymnastics
1 from sailing
2 from shooting
1 from rowing
1 from fencing
2 from boxing
1 from cycling

you'll get more from cycling than swimming and not as many as 15, take away swimming and athletics then your country dont look very good at all given the size and population, 3 gold from gymnastics is unlikely cos the chinese will most probably dominate that with the russians, as for swimming and diving, the aussies and chinese will also dominate, and maybe even the brits will scoop more medals in swimming than usa, the brits and aussies will dominate the velodrome and the brits will dominate sailing.

from what i've read and seen of the chinese hunt for glory in thier own olympics and the hard work from early age they are forced to do, it will be hard for anyone to win a medal, i wont be surprised if this was one of usa's worst olympics.

i doubt they'll be much cop in the pool as they aint the biggest of chavs, but diving is a different story, anything involving acrobatics they'll end up winning, failure is not an option for china and they are making the most of their lack of human rights to get the most out of their athletes.

you'll get more from cycling than swimming and not as many as 15, take away swimming and athletics then your country dont look very good at all given the size and population, 3 gold from gymnastics is unlikely cos the chinese will most probably dominate that with the russians, as for swimming and diving, the aussies and chinese will also dominate, and maybe even the brits will scoop more medals in swimming than usa, the brits and aussies will dominate the velodrome and the brits will dominate sailing.

from what i've read and seen of the chinese hunt for glory in thier own olympics and the hard work from early age they are forced to do, it will be hard for anyone to win a medal, i wont be surprised if this was one of usa's worst olympics.

i doubt they'll be much cop in the pool as they aint the biggest of chavs, but diving is a different story, anything involving acrobatics they'll end up winning, failure is not an option for china and they are making the most of their lack of human rights to get the most out of their athletes.

The u.s gets better @ every olympics...I dont even see the chinese getting past the russians for the 2nd place on the medals table.
With Michael Phelps coming back from a 6 gold medals performance in athens...i see him winning atleast 7-8 golds....and i think the u.s will dominate swimming since the aussie guy ian retired that was the main major competition for the americans. Athletics is also for us to lose...we are retooling right now and i think we will have marion jones back full time...and i think maurice green and shawn crawford will do well in 2008. We will dominate the 100,200,400 meters..relays, hurdles.
Basketball is our game...and Oh hell will break lose if we dont win the gold medals in both women and men. Gymnastics I expect the success of athens to repeat itself next year with the u.s atleast winning 2-3 gold medals...Diving is not a u.s strong point so the chinese will dominate.
Are the chinese good in athletics? no
are they good in swimming? no ...only diving.
Athletics and swimming is where you get most of Golds.
I predict 115 medals overrall next year.

USA will win the most medals @ the 2012 olympics....we own the olympics!!!!!
GO USA GO.

The Olmpics is so much more than who tops the medal table. There are thousands of stories heroism, trials and tribulation, personal endeavour, success and failure that make the olympics such a great event. Watch an opening ceromony, often the country that gets the biggest cheer after the host nation will be tiny war torn country that has gone through the most to get there.

It is not a bad thing to be proud of your country and it's sporting aceivements but, there is a world outside the USA. now please grow up.

i expect china to top the medal tables in 2012 and possible even in 2008,they working dam hard to make sure of that.

There isn't a 3 year old Chinese child in the world that isn't being forced into some form of sport at the moment. Chinese will dominate Olympics to come. USA has seen it's day.

The Chinese have been doing that for years now. How did they do in the 2000 & 2004 olympics ...3rd behind Russia and Usa. It trend continues....

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/olympics/wires/02/20/2090.ap.oly.medals.race.0356/index.html

http://www.china.org.cn/english/sports/145023.htm


All time (per capita) by country:

#1 Finland: 566.724 per 10 million people
#2 Sweden: 520.995 per 10 million people
#3 Hungary: 442.69 per 10 million people
#4 Denmark: 296.392 per 10 million people
#5 Norway: 291.748 per 10 million people
#6 Bulgaria: 261.745 per 10 million people
#7 Saint Kitts and Nevis: 256.687 per 10 million people
#8 Switzerland: 244.358 per 10 million people
#9 Bahamas, The: 198.814 per 10 million people
#10 Estonia: 195.049 per 10 million people
#11 New Zealand: 183.395 per 10 million people
#12 Australia: 174.216 per 10 million people
#13 Bermuda: 152.987 per 10 million people
#14 Jamaica: 135.234 per 10 million people
#15 Belgium: 135.083 per 10 million people
#16 Netherlands: 129.823 per 10 million people
#17 Cuba: 120.737 per 10 million people
#18 Romania: 118.674 per 10 million people
#19 Greece: 118.11 per 10 million people
#20 United Kingdom: 105.557 per 10 million people
#21 Austria: 105.07 per 10 million people
#22 Trinidad and Tobago: 102.326 per 10 million people
#23 Iceland: 101.1 per 10 million people
#24 France: 98.589 per 10 million people
#25 Virgin Islands: 91.99 per 10 million people
#26 Tonga: 88.951 per 10 million people
#27 Italy: 82.44 per 10 million people
#28 United States: 71.551 per 10 million people


2004: 1. United States 35 39 29 103
2. China 32 17 14 63
3. Russia 27 27 38 92

2000: 1. United States 40 24 33 97
2. Russia 32 28 28 88
3. China 28 16 15 59

1996: 1. United States 44 32 25 101
2. Russia 26 21 16 63
3. Germany 20 18 27 65
4. China 16 22 12 50

1992: 1. Unified Team 45 38 29 112
2. United States 37 34 37 108
3. Germany 33 21 28 82
4. China 16 22 16 54

1988: 1. Soviet Union 55 31 46 132
2. East Germany 37 35 30 102
3. United States 36 31 27 94
4. South Korea 12 10 11 33
5. West Germany 11 14 15 40
6. Hungary 11 6 6 23
7. Bulgaria 10 12 13 35
8. Romania 7 11 6 24
9. France 6 4 6 16
10. Italy 6 4 4 14
11. China 5 11 12 28

1984: 1. United States 83 61 30 174
2. Romania 20 16 17 53
3. West Germany 17 19 23 59
4. China 15 8 9 32
5. Italy 14 6 12 32
6. Canada 10 18 16 44
7. Japan 10 8 14 32
8. New Zealand 8 1 2 11
9. Yugoslavia 7 4 7 18
10. South Korea 6 6 7 19

1980: 1. Soviet Union 80 69 46 195
2. East Germany 47 37 42 126
3. Bulgaria 8 16 17 41

1976: 1. Soviet Union 49 41 35 125
2. East Germany 40 25 25 90
3. United States 34 35 25 94

1972: 1. Soviet Union 50 27 22 99
2. United States 33 31 30 94

1968: 1. United States 45 28 34 107
2. Soviet Union 29 32 30 91

1964: 1. United States 36 26 28 90
2. Soviet Union 30 31 35 96

1960: 1. Soviet Union 43 29 31 103
2. United States 34 21 16 71

1956: 1. Soviet Union 37 29 32 98
2. United States 32 25 17 74

1952: 1. United States 40 19 17 76
2. Soviet Union 22 30 19 71

^^ whats your point

If you can't work it out, I'm afraid I can't help you.

Have a good day.

looks like something to do with the size of a countries population having a big hand in the number of medals they win, but in terms of medals per 10 million people in their population their relative success has been less than that of many other countires?

..

Population doesnt have nothing to do with medals won...its the participant that makes a differences....China is 3 times populated than the u.s and we still win more medals....

Im glad you agree with me in that "Population doesnt have nothing to do with medals won" :lol:
(you used a double negative)

If you read the stats carefully you'll also notice that Kentigern was proving that you were wrong in saying that China came 3rd in 2004:
1. United States 35 39 29 103
2. China 32 17 14 63
3. Russia 27 27 38 92

Amongst other things... ;)

Car orientated, financially crippling and poorly designed stadium. Atlanta is a not a model to base hosting the games on.

Anyway back to the actual thread topic LONDON 2012 (If anyone wants to talk about who's good at what or who has won the most medals I would suggest opening a new thread. Ideally in there own national forum ;) )

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/item/55530/254/260/3

BT set to be confirmed as second tier-one sponsor for 2012 Games
21-Mar-07

BT is understood to be close to signing up as the second domestic sponsor of the London 2012 Olympic Games in a deal that could be worth up to £80m.

Lloyds TSB was confirmed as the first tier-one sponsor last week and sources say BT is in the final stages of talks to become the official telecoms partner. The company was one of the sponsors of the 2012 Olympic bid.

Sponsorship of the 2012 Games is divided into three tiers and the London Organising Committee of the London Games (LOCOG) is looking to sign deals with companies in seven other sectors after the Lloyds deal: insurance, utility services, oil and gas, automotive, telecommunications, aviation and sportswear.

BT has long been considered the frontrunner for the telecoms spot, although Vodafone was also believed to be considering the deal. BT and LOCOG declined to comment on suggestions that a deal is imminent.

Lloyds and, potentially, BT will be able to use their brands in conjunction with the 2012 logo and as backers of Team GB for the next six years, including at the Beijing Games in 2008.

Meanwhile, London 2012 is thought to have appointed experiential agency Live Communications to its below-the-line roster. The Omnicom-owned agency will stage a £2m event in May at which the new identity for the 2012 Olympic Games will be unveiled. More sponsors are expected to be announced at the event. Live is understood to have pitched against Imagination and Jack Morton to win the business. Live previously worked on the 2012 Olympic bid and will now work with LOCOG (London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games) to move London from bid city to host city.

Im glad you agree with me in that "Population doesnt have nothing to do with medals won" :lol:
(you used a double negative)

If you read the stats carefully you'll also notice that Kentigern was proving that you were wrong in saying that China came 3rd in 2004:
1. United States 35 39 29 103
2. China 32 17 14 63
3. Russia 27 27 38 92

i know...china can kiss the u.s ass in beijing 2008. its funny nobody is talking about the uk during the olympics cuz they suck hahahahahahah.

Excellent news.

Agreed! This is an area I think London will do very well. I don't think it will be too comercial as there is considerable public finance input. BUT London has excellent marketing companies, a strong, lucrative consumer economy and a whole host of very wealthy companies on the doorstep that will want to be involved.

i know...china can kiss the u.s ass in beijing 2008. its funny nobody is talking about the uk during the olympics cuz they suck hahahahahahah.

That isn't not evidence that someone is an idiot.

Shizzle me nizzle.

Can we get some bread and milk please?

word aka dizzle wanizzle la tizzle fo shizzle

From building


Olympic stadium: if you’re not a VIP bring a brolly
2007 Issue 12

By Tom Broughton

Designs by HOK Sport do not include a roof, but may provide shelter for executive area

HOK Sport’s designs for the 2012 Olympic stadium do not include a roof structure, Building has learned.

An Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) source said that the design did not have a roof, but that it gave the ODA the option of covering an executive or VIP area.

The source said: “Imagine if it was a wet summer – it would be a disaster. The ODA can’t make a decision at the moment, but there is an option for certain parts of the stadium to be covered.

“This obviously causes concern in relation to risk management in the construction programme, but the intention is to provide everybody with clarity to the situation as early as possible.”

The news emerged as Sir Robert McAlpine signed a memorandum of understanding with the ODA to deliver the £400m stadium after weeks of negotiation. The contractor forced the ODA to come up with the document after concerns over its non-Olympic workload and how it would manage its staff.

The source said: “The ODA realises McAlpine is its only feasible option to deliver the stadium. After much discussion it has given them a document. This is not the full contract with an agreed price, but a statement of intent to give them the works.”

The negotiations between the ODA and McAlpine for the full price for the stadium and surrounding works is continuing and subject to final designs that are yet to be released. However it is understood that negotiations are based around a programme of incentives to complete the stadium early and the contract may be on a cost plus basis.

Last week, the government said that the Olympic budget was £9.3bn with the construction budget set at £5.1bn, including a contingency of 20%.

In other Olympic developments, architectural heavyweights Lord Foster and Sir Michael Hopkins have said they will bid to design the international media centre for the Olympics. They will be joined by Sheppard Robson and BDP. Other contenders, Broadway Malyan and Hamilton Associates, have ruled themselves out, saying they will not go for any main venues but will focus on projects peripheral to the Games.

The ODA has also put the aquatics centre for the 2012 Olympics out to tender for contractors.

Work clearing and excavating the site has already begun and construction is due to start in 2008.

Meanwhile, headhunters are expected to draw up a shortlist of candidates for the position of ODA chairman within the next week. Contenders include Roy McNulty, the acting chair; Peter Rogers of Stanhope; and Sir Stuart Lipton, the former Stanhope boss.

From BD Online


Lend Lease goes talent spotting
23 March 2007

By Will Hurst & Amanda Baillieu

Olympic village developers looking for 40 ‘world class’ architects

Architects’ hopes of winning 2012 work have received a huge boost from Olympic village developer the Lend Lease consortium, which has revealed plans for a framework of up to 40 leading practices for the 4,000-home project.

Chairman of Lend Lease Europe, Nigel Hugill, said: “We want a world-class panel of architectural practices to cover a whole range of projects from public realm to landscaping to retail and community buildings and residential.”

While the consortium is likely to favour firms that have worked for partners Lend Lease and East Thames Group and developer First Base — including AHMM, Glenn Howells and Make — the consortium plans to attract a wide range of talent including international firms.

“From this framework, we will draw architects for different blocks of work to create diversity” Hugill added. “This is about creating a really special place, not just for the games but for 2012 onwards.”

But BD understands that time has run out to submit a new Olympic Village masterplan, despite criticism of the existing one by Fletcher Priest. This was drawn up before London won the bid and now fails to relate to the new Olympic park, major new venues and the River Lee, say critics. The Lend Lease consortium is now working with Fletcher Priest and other consultants including Edaw and local councils to co-ordinate plans for the village and the rest of the park.

“We want a world-class panel of architectural practices to cover a whole range of projects”

Nigel Hugill


The news comes as the ODA revealed it too faces huge pressure to procure designs for major permanent and temporary venues for the 2012 games in order to hit its overall deadlines.

ODA head of design Jerome Frost and adviser Ricky Burdett expressed concern that the task would be a “mad rush”. Burdett said: “By April [2008] most of the venues have to be designed, so we have a year… we have to be creative in the way we procure things.”

Frost added: “We want to emulate the pride the Victorians put into their utilities networks.”

The procurement timetable, which next month includes inviting bids to design three large temporary venues — basketball, handball and fencing — will spark concern over whether leading architects can respond in the middle of a boom in work.

Richard Rogers revealed this week that he had been interested in bidding to design the Velodrome but had been put off by other work commitments rather than reported misgivings over design-and-build.

I had a revelation the other day. I had been overly concerned about the architecture for the olympics but I now feel that the overall masterplan could deliver something special even with off-the-shelf architecture... if, and a big IF, they can get the parklands around the buildings spot on, really something beautiful with lots of plants and flowers this would be a stunning shift in focus and would create something quite special indeed. The weather could ruin the impact but its worth a gamble... would like to see more emphasis on energy generation too

From building


Olympic stadium: if you’re not a VIP bring a brolly
2007 Issue 12

By Tom Broughton

Designs by HOK Sport do not include a roof, but may provide shelter for executive area

HOK Sport’s designs for the 2012 Olympic stadium do not include a roof structure, Building has learned.

An Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) source said that the design did not have a roof, but that it gave the ODA the option of covering an executive or VIP area.

The source said: “Imagine if it was a wet summer – it would be a disaster. The ODA can’t make a decision at the moment, but there is an option for certain parts of the stadium to be covered.

“This obviously causes concern in relation to risk management in the construction programme, but the intention is to provide everybody with clarity to the situation as early as possible.”

The news emerged as Sir Robert McAlpine signed a memorandum of understanding with the ODA to deliver the £400m stadium after weeks of negotiation. The contractor forced the ODA to come up with the document after concerns over its non-Olympic workload and how it would manage its staff.

The source said: “The ODA realises McAlpine is its only feasible option to deliver the stadium. After much discussion it has given them a document. This is not the full contract with an agreed price, but a statement of intent to give them the works.”

The negotiations between the ODA and McAlpine for the full price for the stadium and surrounding works is continuing and subject to final designs that are yet to be released. However it is understood that negotiations are based around a programme of incentives to complete the stadium early and the contract may be on a cost plus basis.

Last week, the government said that the Olympic budget was £9.3bn with the construction budget set at £5.1bn, including a contingency of 20%.

In other Olympic developments, architectural heavyweights Lord Foster and Sir Michael Hopkins have said they will bid to design the international media centre for the Olympics. They will be joined by Sheppard Robson and BDP. Other contenders, Broadway Malyan and Hamilton Associates, have ruled themselves out, saying they will not go for any main venues but will focus on projects peripheral to the Games.

The ODA has also put the aquatics centre for the 2012 Olympics out to tender for contractors.

Work clearing and excavating the site has already begun and construction is due to start in 2008.

Meanwhile, headhunters are expected to draw up a shortlist of candidates for the position of ODA chairman within the next week. Contenders include Roy McNulty, the acting chair; Peter Rogers of Stanhope; and Sir Stuart Lipton, the former Stanhope boss.

Durban, King Senzaghakona Cost: 170 million pounds
It even has a roof.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f0/King_saenz.jpg

That's nice but you can't really compare the two countries to be fair Mo. Everything is bound to be more expensive in Europe than in Africa.

I had a revelation the other day. I had been overly concerned about the architecture for the olympics but I now feel that the overall masterplan could deliver something special even with off-the-shelf architecture... if, and a big IF, they can get the parklands around the buildings spot on, really something beautiful with lots of plants and flowers this would be a stunning shift in focus and would create something quite special indeed.

I completely agree with you Potto. If the park aspect is done really well, the overall look of the venues will not be a huge worry as they will be set in a beautiful setting. I think using something like Wimbledon as a model (although on a much larger scale) with the grass embankments, flowers everywhere, sunny open venues, big screen for outside spectators etc. would be best for London's Olympic Park.

Look at Beijing 2008 or even Athens 2004. Beijing has huge mega-strucutres which don't marry very well to the surroundings imho and bear no design similarities with one another. They look like they've just landed from outerspace and from completely different planets.

I very much doubt London's venues would rival Beijing's in terms of their individual brilliance, and London shouldn't try to compete in this respect. It'd be much better if the focus were on the park aspect.

http://www.tropolism.com/watercube_027_m.jpg

Similarly Athens had a great stadium but the "park" was dusty and uninspiring to me. The stadium looked incredible from the inside, but shots over the Olympic Park in 2004 left me empty. It always looked like a building site.

http://www.forthnet.gr/media/FOTOS/Athens2004/OAKA_aerofotografia350.jpg

I'd much rather the stadium in London was a bit bland than the park which should be full of colour and greenery. If London is to aspire to any past Olympics in terms of design it should be Munich.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v602/arc_angel/Lenas%20Besuch/573_28052005014.jpg
(isn't it incredible how modern it all still looks?)

The renderings I've seen so far for London leave me optimistic in this respect. The park is the most important thing for me. I hope the ODA agree.

That's nice but you can't really compare the two countries to be fair Mo. Everything is bound to be more expensive in Europe than in Africa.
.

I still think for the 400 million pound price tag a roof should def be included. If they cant fit a fully covered stadium into the 400 million price tag then they need to find another designer/architect/team/construction firm. They would certainly not be getting value for money.

^^ agreed

If they cant fit a fully covered stadium into the 400 million price tag then they need to find another designer/architect/team/construction firm.

There isn't another firm available in the UK that matches all the ODA's requirements.

http://static.sky.com/images/pictures/1515948.jpg
It may be a building site now, but this is where the Olympic Park, in Stratford, will be built for the 2012 games.

posted today on skynews.com (http://news.sky.com/skynews/picture_gallery/picture_gallery/0,,70141-1257525-10,00.html).

Well in all honesty that's where the Olympic Village and Stratford City will be. The stadium and Aquatic Centre is off to the bottom right, and the Park itself extends quite a way to the left.

But it does show how massive a site this project is.

A 50 volume document just arrived where I work, by the ODA. I only work Tuesdays so if I get a chance next week I'll have a look. I don't know where to start though, there are thousands and thousands of pages, in 5 big boxes!

Just adding weight to what I've already said - the ODA are modelling on "Emirates, not Wembley" for the main stadium. Design expected to be finished in the next couple of months.

Olympic Delivery Authority

The first opportunities to deliver the structures, bridges, highways and associated infrastructure for the Olympic Park, have been unveiled to the construction industry by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA).

The structures, roads and bridges project will play a major role in creating a compact and integrated Park and leaving an open and accessible park in legacy. An Industry Day to outline the project was held last month and was attended by over 200 business people, including representatives from some of the UK and Europe’s major building contractors, sub-contractors and suppliers.

The scope of the project includes 13 footbridges, five landbridges, 14 road bridges, five underpasses; 20km of loop, primary and secondary roads in and around the Olympic Park; retaining walls, security fencing and other ancillary structures; road signage and marking, and road, bridge and underpass lighting and surface water drainage systems.

Following the Industry Day, the ODA has issued an OJEU contract notice for the first four packages of work:
# Lot 1 - Olympic Park North Area Roads and Bridges: 12km of loop roads, primary and secondary roads; two land bridges; one road bridge; two underpasses; retaining walls and other ancillary works.
# Lot 2 - Olympic Park South Area Roads and Bridges: approx 8.6km of loop roads, primary and secondary roads; four road bridges; footbridge; permanent and temporary underpass; retaining walls and other ancillary works.
# Lot 3 - Rail Over-Bridges: three land bridges; two road bridges; one temporary road bridge; two footbridges; retaining walls and other ancillary works.
# Lot 4 - Main Stadium Area Bridges: a road bridge; four footbridges; retaining walls and other ancillary works.

ODA Director of Infrastructure, Simon Wright said: “These first contracts are an opportunity for construction companies of all sizes to play a vital role in helping create the best-connected Games ever and provide an open and accessible Park in legacy.”

Relevant Links:
https://etenders.london2012.com/web/login.shtml

It would be pretty shameful if they couldn't even manage a roof on the Olympic stadium!!

Newham council also pointed out the cost savings are eating into the budget for the parts of the Masterplan that are meant to be viable future spaces such as the residential build and the open spaces, they are worried that the residential blocks could become slums if adequate investment in the area is not as first envisaged. I would rather the costs were maintained or increased in this area of the project but it would be an easy area to cost cut, sigh

It would be pretty shameful if they couldn't even manage a roof on the Olympic stadium!!

What do you expect? The same lady in charge as for the Casino licencing. If she can't even get that done, forget about the Olympics. Maybe they should send her to the NHS to implant a brain, that may help.

one of my favourite articles this year,

Barcelona’s revival proves London 2012 humbuggers are wrong in the long run
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Simon Barnes, Chief Sports Writer

The world is full of people who will say “bah humbug” at the least possible excuse, so it was inevitable that the awarding of the 2012 Olympic Games to London would spawn an entire new race of Olympic Humbuggers. There is a cure, but, like all cures, it only works on those who want to be cured.

Come with me to Barcelona. Come anyway, even if you have no intention of being cured, because it’s a fabulous city and might put a spot of life back into your crusty old humbuggering soul. But if you genuinely want to learn about what the Olympic Games is all about, Barcelona is the best place in the world to go.

I was there 15 years ago. I was there in the city where Antonio Rebello, the paralympic archer, shot his flaming arrow over the Olympic cauldron, causing it to burst into flame in the best coup de th��tre in sporting history; and I was there in the city where Fu Mingxia created the finest image of a sport ever seen, the 13-year-old diving for gold at the Olympic complex at the top of Montjuic with the cityscape of Barcelona spread out beyond her.

And I am here again now, for there is a football match in town today; Liverpool play Barcelona in the Champions League first knockout round, and I am sure I will care about it all very much when I get to the Nou Camp. But right now, as I walk the unmean streets of Barcelona, I find myself � la recherche des jeux perdus.

But no: the Games are not lost. There I was, peering out over the track along which Linford Christie had gazed, reducing the world to a tunnel one hundred metres in length, one Linford wide. And there, the last bend that Sally Gunnell had run with such fire and accuracy, becoming, in her moment of victory, a trifle unexpectedly, the most beautiful woman in the world.

The stadium is now the home of Espanyol football team. The pool next door, where Alexander Popov won two individual gold medals in a detonation of brilliance, is still there and much used.

Down the road is the Sant Jordi Sports Hall in which Vitaly Scherbo won four gymnastics gold medals on the same day. It was here, on the summit of Montjuic, that I first understood the Olympic Games.

There was a bus that endlessly circled the mount, stopping at every Olympic venue. I realised, in these uniquely vivid circumstances, that I could get off at any stop, walk into any venue and witness the most important day of somebody’s life, the day for which all other days had been preparation.

Olympic legacy. It’s one of the things people keep talking about: what’s in it for me? What will the Olympic Games do for us? How will my life be better for the Olympic Games? Well, if you must see the Olympic Games in such terms, Barcelona is the best place to examine the point.

For Barcelona has gone down in history as the city that used the Olympics for renewal as no city has ever done before. These days, all cities that seek to maximise the benefits of the Olympic Games study Barcelona, London included. You can see why with a visit to the Olympic Port, where I interviewed a tough, sexy windsurfer called Penny Way. Behind the harbour and the yachts was the Athletes Village.

These days, it is a triumph of urban planning. The Barcelona Games was always a long-term scheme. Two towers dominate the place, the two tallest buildings in Spain, behind them a genuinely agreeable-looking housing complex. The waterfront is full of caf�s and there were already Liverpool supporters in Pizza Hut. As Steven Gerrard and city planners both know, it’s all about the use of space.

In Barcelona, unemployment fell dramatically with the award of the Games, and in the years after the Games, the expansive Olympic effect has continued. In one area after another, the response to the Olympic push has been sustained. There is a league table that places European cities in order of attractiveness to foreign investors. In 1991, Barcelona was eleventh; it is now sixth.

Meanwhile, the city carries on, building and construction continues, there is further investment in other areas of the city, and the transport system has been improved since the Games with new projects, including high-speed trains. In other words, if you get it right, the Olympic Games is a very powerful force for sustained and long-term material benefits to a city. Not just a few stadiums.

And I know I should care about all this more than I do, for Barcelona’s sake and for London’s. But I am more inclined to think not of Barcelona’s twin towers, but of the boycott-free Games, in which all the IOC countries took part for the first time since 1972. South Africa were allowed back after 28 years’ suspension. Germany entered a single team for the first time since 1960. The Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania took part for the first time. It seemed that, for 17 days at least, the human race could actually get something right.

I watched Alexander Karelin, the Greco-Roman wrestler (hobbies: reading, classical music, writing poems) hurling other giants around for fun. I watched the gorgeous Svetlana Boguinskaya — the sphinx from Minsk — in the gymnastics. I listened as Ian Stark, the three-day eventer, described leaping the most formidable obstacle on the cross-country course: “There’s nothing better in the world. Except maybe sex.” Note that “maybe”.

I made a daily pilgrimage from one greatest-day-of-my-life to the next, and when it was all over each night, I found myself on the Ramblas again, despite having given up whisky only that morning. I was off my head for most of the Games, as private grief (my mother was dying) mingled incomprehensibly with public rejoicing at the greatest party that the human race had ever thrown. Perhaps it was bettered in Sydney, perhaps it will be bettered again in Beijing next year. And London can, if we get it right, have the honour of going still better and showing the world that the greatest legacy of the Olympic Games is not in towers and sewers and trains, but in the shared rejoicing in the lunatic search for greatness, in the endless living mythologies that sport creates and, above all, in the illusion that the world is ripe for the healing.

After the women’s 10,000 metres, Elana Meyer, the white south African who finished second, ran a lap of honour hand in hand with the Ethiopian winner, Derartu Tulu; and even if Tulu looked less than enchanted, it was great symbolism. But my mind always goes back to Fu: that image of innocence and grandeur, of youth and the search for perfection, an image made still more vivid for all the subtle hints of exploitation and politics that lie beneath. It is when Fu touches the sky and bounces back that you see what the Olympic Games is for, and understand that the Games can renew more things than cities.

AJplus.co.uk
Published 03 April 2007 at 11:42
CABE and Design for London back Olympic Park – but only with reservations

CABE and Design for London (DfL) have given their broad support to the 2012 Olympic Park masterplan, but have highlighted areas which they deemed need ‘further consideration’.
Although both bodies gave overall praise to the masterplan application, particularly in regards to the amount of thought and work behind it, they reiterated the importance of good design in the success of the 2012 Games and its legacy.

The main area highlighted in the review document is the International Broadcast and Main Press Centres, with the report querying the scale, orientation and layout of the centres.

The site, the report said, will be ‘an important factor in the regeneration of Hackney Wick’. The document added: ‘It is therefore fundamental that the parameters fixed in the current application take account of how these large development blocks will positively address and integrate with the existing community in the legacy.’

Pedestrian movement is also an area which both CABE and DfL believe needs more work, so that access during Games mode is optimised but walking distances in legacy mode are minimised.

CABE and DfL’s comments on the park, designed by masterplanners EDAW, Allies and Morrison, Foreign Office Architects and HOK, were made before the formal planning application was submitted in February.

DfL director Peter Bishop said: ‘The 2012 Olympics will be the biggest show on earth and a major showcase for London.

‘It is absolutely vital that we get the best possible designs for buildings and public space on the Olympic Park. The signs so far are very positive and we will be working hard to ensure this continues.’

by Richard Vaughan

2012 Olympics chairman says budget is under control


· Current £9.3bn funding described as realistic
· London project 'has been fast out of the blocks'

Andrew Culf, sports correspondent
Monday April 2, 2007
The Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/olympics2012/story/0,,2048050,00.html)

The industrialist responsible for the London 2012 Olympics construction project has rejected claims that the budget will continue to soar over the next five years, and predicted that the final cost will probably be less than the £9.3bn announced by the government.

Sir Roy McNulty, acting chairman of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), said the budget, which has trebled since London was awarded the games, was now "realistic".

In an interview with the Guardian to mark the project's first year yesterday, he insisted it had been "fast out of the blocks" and hit all the main milestones. Sceptics have warned of possible £15bn costs but Sir Roy said there would be "pressure to deliver value for money throughout the whole exercise" and the Olympics were "in relatively good shape".

Article continues
The government has been criticised for its £2.7bn contingency overspend fund, described as "breathtakingly ridiculous" by the London mayor, Ken Livingstone, who claimed it would encourage contractors to inflate costs in the belief there was an inexhaustible pot of Olympic gold.

But Sir Roy said: "I do not think the construction industry sees it like that. We expect there will be vigorous competition for most of the contracts. It isn't a big book of blank cheques just waiting for us to use. I think there is a very high likelihood we will live within the £9.3bn figure."

The Olympic project has been buffeted by media firestorms since the ODA's first chairman, the US troubleshooter Jack Lemley, walked out saying the games were behind schedule and beset with political infighting. Sir Roy set about stabilising the ODA amid talk of escalating costs, VAT bills, rows over fees for consultants, and concerns about ground contamination.

The ODA will this week publish a "dig, demolish and design" timeline of objectives. Sir Roy said the ODA had studied the lessons of Wembley. But he added: "Look at Arsenal's Emirates stadium - nobody talks about catastrophe there. The decision making was good, the planning good, the execution good - and it was built by the same team that's building our Olympic stadium."

I find it very hard to be negative about LOCOG or the ODA. Completely top notch professionals who seem to know what they are doing and getting the right people on the job. The Government however and the budget (which itself I find completely unsurprisied by it has increased) could have acted in a much more professional manner, but I have no fear in meeting 2012 deadlines and putting on a spectacular games.

Does anyone have anymore information on the Stratford visitor's centre and the viewing spike? When will this open?

I find it very hard to be negative about LOCOG or the ODA. Completely top notch professionals who seem to know what they are doing and getting the right people on the job. The Government however and the budget (which itself I find completely unsurprisied by it has increased) could have acted in a much more professional manner, but I have no fear in meeting 2012 deadlines and putting on a spectacular games.

Does anyone have anymore information on the Stratford visitor's centre and the viewing spike? When will this open?

I could not agree more, not many people realise the benefit of starting work early and the amazing progress london has made it timing and planning everything down to the last detail. I've skimmed through the planning application and the detail is outstanding, the Olympic park and new housing developments post 2012 will really take london to a new level.

Now if only they could find somebody to build a fully-roofed stadium

Is the planning application anywhere online?

Is the planning application anywhere online?

yes its been online since it was released.

http://planning.london2012.com/publicaccess/

New construction targets announced for London 2012
4 April, 2007
By Dan Stewart
'Demolish Design Dig' phase of Olympic delivery to be achieved before end of the Beijing Olympics

One year after the creation of the Olympic Delivery Authority, the targets to be achieved for the next stage of London 2012 have been launched.

ODA chief executive David Higgins and Organising Committee chair Seb Coe announced 10 'milestones' to be achieved before the end of the Beijing Olympics next year, when the Olympic flag comes to London.



Known collectively as the 'Demolish Dig Design' phase of the Olympic project, these are:
1) The majority of the site will be cleared and cleaned. Higgins said 75% of the site has been decontaminated already.

2) Power for the Olympic Park will be “set to switch underground”. 52 electricity pylons will be removed, with the cables moved underground. The first of the underground tunnels to carry the powerlines has already been completed.

3) The main temporary roads and bridges will be completed. Six temporary bridges will be built, with construction to start in Autumn 2007.

4) The installation of new water and energy systems will have started. Contracts for their installation and operation will be awarded in late Autumn 2007

5) The regeneration of the 8km of Olympic Park waterways will have started. Construction work on the river walls will begin later this year.

6) The regeneration of transport links in East London and Stratford will have started. The first of the new Javelin trains to run between Stratford and St Pancras will start testing in Summer 2007.

7) Construction work will have started on the main bridge from the aquatic centre to the stadium, and building work on the stadium itself will be imminent. The ODA’s timetable for the stadium is that designs will be completed in the summer; planning application will be completed by the end of 2007 and permission granted in the first half of 2008. In the summer of 2008, the contractor will take possession of the site.

8) Construction of the Olympic Village will have started. The ODA has signed a memorandum of agreement with developers Lend Lease and Westfield, with legal agreement expected in late May, a planning decision anticipated in the Autumn, and construction starting next year.

9) Contracts let and designs agreed for the “Big Four” venues. The first of the four is dealt with in milestone 7 (above) but the ODA are expecting a shortlist of contractors for the Aquatics Centre in a few weeks, with appointment at the end of the year; a design team appointed for the VeloPark by Summer 2007; and designs for the Media Centre to be complete by summer 2008.

10) Development of legacy masterplan will be “well advanced.” The Legacy Masterplan Framework is being written up, and the ODA says the first stage – “confirming a vision for the legacy and identifying options” for the park after the Games finishes – will be well underway by the time Beijing 2008 kicks off.

David Higgins said: “We want to be transparent and it is important we set ourselves milestones to achieve that.”

If the targets are achieved, construction for the main part of the Olympic site will be able to begin on or soon after August 24, 2008 – the final day of Beijing 2008.

How on earth can so much money be spent already?

ODA has ‘spent’ 70% of construction contingency
5 April, 2007
By Angela Monaghan
building.co.uk
About £350m of £500m construction safety net is earmarked for projects already under way

More than two-thirds of the contingency budget for the construction of the 2012 Olympics has already been earmarked for spending.

The Olympic Delivery Authority is understood to have set aside £500m of its £5.3bn construction budget in case of overruns. But it has emerged that about £350m of this money has, in effect, already been spent on projects that are under way, albeit at an early stage.

A source close to the Olympic construction programme said: “These are costs that have already been identified on venues and infrastructure.”

This means that the construction spend will almost certainly eat into the separate £2.7bn contingency fund announced by the Treasury two weeks ago as part of the overall £9.3bn Olympic budget.

The source said it would require additional support from the Treasury’s fund “sooner rather than later”.

The £2.7bn figure was calculated as a percentage of the entire programme costs, based on the cost of previous large projects, including the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and other countries’ Olympics.

There is no specific agreement in place with the Treasury on how the contingency might be spent, or how and when the ODA will be eligible to claim funds from it.

The source said: “The task was to get the budget over the line. The Treasury wanted a top figure on what the overspend could be.”

The fact that the cost increases have come to light before construction work on venues has started gives an insight into the rate of expenditure and cost increases that the project faces.

The ODA is still working on a final design for the £400m main Olympic stadium with contractor Sir Robert McAlpine and architect HOK. It is understood that designs have been scaled back to keep costs down. The stadium is unlikely to include a roof structure as a result.

A spokesperson for the ODA said: “This is speculation. We would reiterate the statement by Sir Roy McNulty [the acting ODA chairman] that we have a realistic budget and prudent contingency and we are confident that we’ll come within that.”

At the end of last week the ODA submitted a planning application for sailing facilities in the Dorset towns of Weymouth and Portland, which will be used during the 2012 Games.

Too much to do
2007 Issue 14

The article “Rogers pulls out of Olympic velopark”(16 March, page 12) was somewhat misleading. Although we decided not to go for this scheme, I reviewed the competition documents for the velopark and applaud the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) for a clear and well-run competition structure.

Our decision not to proceed with a submission is not intended as a criticism of the ODA’s approach; rather, it reflects the fact that our resources are fully committed and we would currently be unable to take on the scheme, if successful.

Richard Rogers, chairman, Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners

http://www.london2012.com/NR/rdonlyres/D6B0BEFE-5B49-4697-B8E5-367313658EBD/0/DesignPrinciplesfortheOlympicPark.pdf

This is a link to the Design Principles For The Olympic Park. No renderings we haven't seen before, but some good textual insights into how the Park will feel.

AJplus.co.uk
Published 18 April 2007 at 11:45
Sheppard Robson confirms velodrome collaboration with Olympic gold medallist

Sheppard Robson has confirmed it is working with Olympic cycling gold medallist Chris Boardman on its competition entry for the London 2012 velodrome.
The practice is the latest to throw its hat into the ring in the contest to design the showpiece project – one of the ‘Big Five’ permanent venues in the Olympic Park.

Launched by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) in February ( ODA launches Olympic Velo Park comp ), it is understood that the contest has already attracted the likes of Foster and Partners, Make, Marks Barfield, David Adjaye, Foreign Office Architects and Reid Architecture – which is currently designing the velodrome for Scotland’s Commonwealth Games bid.

The colloboration between Boardman, who won an individual gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, and Sheppard Robson will undoubtedly raise a few eyebrows among the other competitors.

The bidders are currently waiting to hear whether they have made the final shortlist, due to be unveiled towards the end of next week.

Meanwhile a spokesman for the ODA has quashed rumours that track specialist Ron Webb, who worked in Athens and Sydney, will be brought in to design the track itself.

The AJ understands that the track will be put out to ‘open procurement’ through OJEU.

by Richard Waite

Thanks Darjole for keeping this thread up to date :) Let's hope all the new venues compliment each other. My money's on the velodrome looking like a giant bicycle component, perhaps a cycle helmet, if Chris Boardman is helping the architects design it. But the Olympic stadium is the big one though, as this is the stadium everyone will remember. Fingers crossed for a world-class set of designs.

The drawings so far are lookin' excellent.

But the Olympic stadium is the big one though, as this is the stadium everyone will remember. Fingers crossed for a world-class set of designs.

I'm not expecting much for the stadium. It won't have a roof afterall!

But, I'm not that concerned. We have the iconic Wembley, the iconic Millennium Dome, the iconic Aquatic Centre and what will be an iconic Velodrome. This is more than enough 'iconic' structures to gain people's attention around the world on their TV screens. In fact, that's more than Beijing, who really only have the Aquatic Centre and stadium as jaw-dropping designs. The rest I can take or leave.

AJplus.co.uk
Published 25 April 2007 at 11:28, updated 11:31
Eight practices line up in Olympic Velopark competition


The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has unveiled a mixed bag of European architects to compete for one of the biggest projects in the 2012 Olympics – the Velopark.
A total of eight practices have been shortlisted to battle it out for the scheme: David Chipperfield Architects; sport aficionado David Morley Architects; Dominique Perrault Architecture; Flacq; Faulkner Brown with Heatherwick Studio; Foreign Office Architects; Hopkins Architects with Sanda Douma Associates; and finally Stirling Prize-winner Wilkinson Eyre.

Each practice will now come up with concept designs to provide a velodrome and a BMX circuit.

The announcement will come as a blow to practices including Reid Architects – which is currently working on designs for a velodrome for Glasgow’s 2014 Commonwealth Games – and Sheppard Robson, which had signed up cycling Olympian Chris Boardman to boost its chances.

The final designs will be judged by a panel including Nicholas Serota, Ricky Burdett, Sunand Prasad and 2004 Olympic-gold-medal cyclist Chris Hoy.

London 2012 organising committee chairman Seb Coe said: ‘The calibre of our design jury has been matched by an equally impressive shortlist of world-class designers. This is exactly what we want to ensure there is a world-class venue put in place with a lasting legacy.’

by Richard Vaughan

The new 2012 logo will be unveiled next month.

Exciting! I can't wait to see the new logo. I hope its something iconic for London and not some gibberish like children or some bollox about multi-whatever.

Exciting! I can't wait to see the new logo. I hope its something iconic for London and not some gibberish like children or some bollox about multi-whatever.

Can I second absolutely everything said here.

I think London 2012 will be a hugely successful olympics. I believe Bejing will be spectacular but will be dogged by controvesy. (human rights and drugs) Whereas London will be seen as being both safe and green.

I'm also looking forward to the logo. I hope it will be one that London fans will be proud of.

The new slogan is rather good. I don't think I can say what it is but the idea is centred around all the various aspects of the Games - legacy, environment etc. - and how original it will be.

The Olympic stadium conceptual design has been completed, there may still be a few tweaks before it is made public.

Where do you guys (BenL and Mo) get your info? Not saying I don't believe you, but I'm intruiged :-)

Where do you guys (BenL and Mo) get your info? Not saying I don't believe you, but I'm intruiged :-)

They are inside-workers no doubt. Or have links with architects/Games organisers

Also sites like Gamesbids dedicated to things like this...

I've been a member of Gamesbids much longer than I have here (I'm on more than 3000 posts) and yet I didn't know that info about the stadium Mo's just told us.

The Olympic stadium conceptual design has been completed, there may still be a few tweaks before it is made public.

Will it have a roof or will we have to depend on the Russians coming in to seed the clouds over Wales?

The stadium will be completed for less than £500m and will have a partial roof. The design is nowhere near finished but don't expect anything particuarly ground-breaking.

AJplus.co.uk
Published 27 April 2007 at 11:39
Olympic walkway comp won by Adams and Sutherland...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c0/The_Greenway_East_London.jpg/120px-The_Greenway_East_London.jpg

Adams and Sutherland Architects has won a competition to redesign the main public walkway running through the 2012 Olympic Park in east London.
The north London-based practice fought off the likes of Alison Brookes Architects, PLUS, Erect Architecture and Kinnear Landscape Architects to secure one of the few Olympic projects open to smaller practices.

The scheme, called the Greenway, will redevelop a 3km public walkway that runs from Victoria Park in Hackney to West Ham in Newham, and is currently poorly lit and in a state of disrepair.

The competition was organised by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), and the project – according to the Olympic body – is ‘key to regenerating the neglected public spaces around the Olympic Park area’.

Adams and Sutherlands director Elizabeth Adams, said: ‘Our team is delighted to win this project. This is an excellent opportunity to be involved in the 2012 Games and to engage with local people in the creation of a meaningful legacy.

‘The Greenway is already an extraordinary place and we look forward to strengthening its qualities within a context of great change.’

The practice will start work on the designs immediately, and it is hoped the proposals will be put into place in summer 2008.

by Richard Vaughan

Published 27 April 2007 at 11:39
...While Parliament protests as ODA takes lion’s share of Lottery loot


The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has met with fresh opposition in Parliament for siphoning off Lottery money which would otherwise have gone elsewhere.
The decision by the government to allow the ODA access to up to £675 million of National Lottery funding is now the focus of an Early Day Motion (EDM) set up by a number of MPs opposed to the move.

The motion reads: ‘This House supports the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games; condemns the redirection of up to £675 million of National Lottery funding to meet increased infrastructure costs to the Games; and notes that such a diversion will lead to profound funding cuts for the very culture that the Prime Minister hailed as a key reason for Britain’s successful Olympic bid’.

The EDM was put down by Mark Fisher, Labour MP for Stoke on Trent, and has already started to attract signatures from fellow MPs, who believe the decision to redirect this Lottery cash flies in the face of Tony Blair’s recent claim that this is a ‘golden age’ for British art.

The motion continues: ‘[We] call upon the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and the Chancellor of the Exchequer to support and protect the arts and heritage sectors by safeguarding Lottery funding from any further diversion to the Olympics at a time when the culture of the UK will be on view to the world.’

Meanwhile, a House of Lords debate, which Lord Kenneth Baker has secured to ‘call attention to the effect upon heritage and the arts of the transfer of Lottery funds to the 2012 Olympic Games’, has been scheduled for the 17 May.

Lord Davies of Oldham will argue the case on behalf of the government.

by Richard Vaughan

The stadium will be completed for less than £500m and will have a partial roof. The design is nowhere near finished but don't expect anything particuarly ground-breaking.
So, basically, a bit like Sydney all in all. That makes a lot of sense to me. The Beijing roof was originally going to close completely, but that was scrapped and scalled back. It seems these roof things are expensive.

The road to 2012
bdonline.co.uk
27 April 2007

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/c/r/v/A_S_greenway_siteplan_ready.jpg

Adams & Sutherland has won the Olympic Delivery Authority’s competition to upgrade the Greenway in east London, a 3km embankment and public way running from Victoria Park to West Ham down the full length of the Olympic Park. The Greenway will provide pedestrian and cycle access for visitors to the 2012 games, and will be a key structuring device for the site’s subsequent development. The ODA launched the competition in February and received 70 entries. Here the five shortlisted practices explain their schemes.

Winner: Adams & Sutherland

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/m/j/s/A_S_night_ready.jpg

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/t/g/y/A_S_brick_place_ready.jpg

Our tactics for improving the Greenway recognise its role as an amenity on both a citywide and local scale. We would register and improve the qualities it already offers in the following ways:

Conceal and reveal
Points of access and intersection with roads and rivers can become “nodes” of activity where new access and activity emphasise the presence of the Greenway. Equally the views from the Greenway can be opened up at these points through new openings in bridge walls.

Reuse and recycle
The reinvention of this place should provide an opportunity to record and make use of the enormous process of clearance about to begin. Retaining some of the pylons which are to be dismantled will create a series of markers at the scale of the valley providing a pace to this stretch of the Greenway and a dramatic structure to support wind-responsive lights.

Boundary and seam
New residential developments planned alongside the Greenway will share this space with existing communities. The Greenway can connect rather than divide by extending the activities it offers.

Amenity
At the city scale the Greenway is a cycle and pedestrian route from Victoria Park to Beckton and beyond. New neighbourhood uses will supplement more limited uses, resulting in areas of intensity around the nodes. Locating good-quality play spaces at the point of access to the Greenway will provide destination points.

Destination
The Greenway is also a link to a series of as yet unrecognised destinations: the Victorian Abbey Mills Pumping Station, the future Olympic visitor centre and East Beckton Alps and eventually Cross River Park.

Plus

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/j/r/m/plus_elements_clean_ready.jpg

The Plus proposal redesigns the Greenway experience through layers of vegetation, seasonal scents, textures, nesting and breeding areas. Plus aims to transform the Greenway’s apparently linear route into a rich perceptual journey, varying in intensity and accent throughout the year.

The established role of the Greenway as functional spine to north-east London is seized and renewed through its reinvention not only as path, but as meeting place, urban node, and ecological haven, serving the spontaneous use of international visitors and the long-term needs of local residents alike.

Flexible in both use and biodiversity, the once social spaces of the Olympic era are designed to naturally return to biodiverse fields intertwined with public urban infrastructure.

Erect Architecture

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/y/c/d/Erect_layout_clean_ready.jpg

The industrial heritage of the East End is celebrated through the use of red brick as the leading material. To overcome the separation between communities and activities on the north and south of the Greenway we propose frequent connections in the form of green “scent bridges”.

To avoid the Greenway becoming purely a thoroughfare we propose to create places, in connection with existing and new amenities, historic views and attractions. These destinations include the ecopark at the intersection with the river Lea, “Mount Olympus”, improvements to Abbey Mill recreation ground and a skate park down to West Ham station.

The bigger places are added to by a series of smaller “identity rooms” along the pedestrian pathway. These accommodate a series of playstations and seating as well as specifically designed brick paving.

Kinnear Landscape Architects

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/l/k/s/Kinnear_route_entrance_C6C6.jpg

Our aim is to make the Greenway green again by creating a rich herb layer with diverse insect life which will support birds and bats. Illuminated landmarks will be introduced along the route, to make it safe and visible from afar. Allotments and gardens on the side of the Greenway will diversify the vegetation types and makes the route more populated and safer. Play zones will bring children and families up onto the Greenway and make it busier. Seating will be robust and informed by the ruggedness of the existing industrial landscape.

Alison Brooks Architects

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/x/j/r/ABA__Section_axo_ready.jpg

To convey the spirit and image of a dynamic new linear park for London, ABA’s concept for the new identity of the Greenway project is based on velocity. Velocity implies speed, time, distance, measurement, athletics, Olympic races, as well as natural phenomena that involve speed such as wind, light and the flow of water. Last but not least is idea of the velo (cycle) city — a cyclist’s heaven — which is one of the mayor’s aims for London within a broader societal drive for sustainable urban transport.

Retaining some of the pylons which are to be dismantled will create a series of markers at the scale of the valley providing a pace to this stretch of the Greenway and a dramatic structure to support wind-responsive lights.
.

That'll be the first piece of 'value engineering' by the bean counters then.

That'll be the first piece of 'value engineering' by the bean counters then.

The cynical side of me agrees. But I can kind of see their point - as a user of the Greenway I did tend to wonder how spectators from West Ham station would know which direction to walk to the Park. It would be cool if they are each lit up with the colour of the Olympic rings.

The cynical side of me agrees. But I can kind of see their point - as a user of the Greenway I did tend to wonder how spectators from West Ham station would know which direction to walk to the Park. It would be cool if they are each lit up with the colour of the Olympic rings.

Well a massive Olympic Ring, lit up above each of the Big Five would be cool!

The stadium will be completed for less than £500m and will have a partial roof. The design is nowhere near finished but don't expect anything particuarly ground-breaking.

The Emirate Stadium costs £300 mio and has a roof. On top of that it loos reasonably good. Of course the Olympic Stadium will be bigger, but I'd like to believe that for £500 mio one should be able to get a roof over the stands.

What are they going to do when it rains? Even in Athens they did not take that chance.

Anyway, does the UK have planes that can seed the clouds as they do in China and Russia for big events?

I'm interested in how the ODA will explain the lack of a roof. If you think support for the Games is being eroded because of the media's fascination with the budget, I can't wait to the PR disaster looming about the lack of a roof in what the world considers a rainy country.

^^

Indeed. On average, London has 12 wet days in July.

I'm seeing Tessa Jowell tomorrow - if anyone has any serious Olympics questions, I could try and ask them?

^^

Indeed. On average, London has 12 wet days in July.

Its a good thing then that the majority of the Olympics are being held in August ;)

Has anyone been able to get hold of the latest aerial photos of the olympic site released today by the ODA?

AJplus.co.uk
Published 03 May 2007 at 00:01
ODA promises ‘Olympic design to match the great Expos of the past’

London 2012 Olympics design guru Ricky Burdett has promised London a series of temporary venues to rival the great Expos of the past.
Speaking exclusively to the AJ about the launch today of contests to design the Games’ new basketball and fencing arenas, Burdett said he was calling for innovative answers to the challenges of building vast non-permanent structures.

The larger of the two new venues will be a 90m-long, 12,000-seat hall which the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) wants to be lightweight, easy to assemble and up and running at least a year before the Games kick off.

According to the ODA, there is currently no suitable ‘off-the-shelf solution’ available, so each of the halls will have to be designed from scratch.

Burdett suggested entrants could look for inspiration in the highly successful temporary buildings at the World Expositions in Osaka in 1970 and Hanover in 2000, and even the Festival of Britain in 1951.

Burdett said: ‘The Expo model is extremely appropriate. The ODA, as [chief executive] David Higgins has said recently, wants to ratchet up the design agenda while keeping within the terms of deliverability.’

However, Burdett has warned that the new competitions are not out-and-out design contests, and that younger practices would probably need to link up with more experienced heads to stand a chance of winning.

‘This is different to the contest for the Greenways [the Games’ 3km of urban space] because the designers will need to have a wider skills base, so emerging talent could enter but as part of a strong consortium.’

Intriguingly, the ODA has again made the unusual step of writing to leading practices across Europe – as it did with the Velopark contest – to encourage entries from a wide range of experience and backgrounds.

Once the Games are over it is understood the multi-purpose venues will be sold off in a similar way to the Serpentine Pavilion, although Burdett admits finding a home for the huge venues could be difficult.

Meanwhile, it is expected that further competitions will be unveiled in the coming weeks for two hockey stadia and related facilities.

More information about the OJEU contests can be found at www.ted.europa.eu

by Richard Waite

Nearly a quarter of the Olympic Park has been cleared, the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has announced, as new aerial footage of the Park was released.

The aerial footage shows the amount of land clearance already completed but also underlines the scale of the challenge. It shows the ODA are firmly on track to have the majority of the park cleared and cleaned by Beijing 2008, one of ten key Milestones to Beijing announced last month.

ODA is demolishing buildings, removing invasive vegetation and cleaning up the land as it gains possession of each part of the site and in total 24% of the entire Olympic Park has now been cleared. Clearance and demolition has started on key parts of the site, including Eton Manor in the north and the Aquatics Centre site in the south. So far over 95% of demolition material is being recycled or reused, beating the 90% target set out in ODA’s Sustainable Development Strategy earlier this year.

Site investigation work on the park, including surface and deep level soil testing, is also making progress with three-quarters of the site now assessed. Site investigation will be completed when the ODA gains full possession of the whole Olympic Park site in July.

The full possession of the site will also mark the next phase of demolition on site. During a nine month programme 256 buildings will be demolished, most of them industrial, and again, wherever possible, materials will be reused or recycled.

ODA Director of Infrastructure and Utilities, Simon Wright said: “The aerial footage shows both the scale of the task ahead of us in clearing the park but also the excellent progress we have made so far.”

In case anyone wants to 'get on site' before they start full demolition you have until July 1st - after that the whole area will be security cordoned off and not opened again until 2012.

I'm interested in how the ODA will explain the lack of a roof. If you think support for the Games is being eroded because of the media's fascination with the budget, I can't wait to the PR disaster looming about the lack of a roof in what the world considers a rainy country.

Rainy days per year:

London: 145
Beijing: 66
Athens: 103
Sydney: 152
Atlanta: 124
Barcelona: 79
Seoul: 112
Los Angeles: 37
Moscow: 181
Paris: 162

Why should London's stadium require a roof, if these wetter cities in bold managed to get away without one?

^thats an interesting list not because of London's position (Paris and Moscow are always grey it seems and get away with it in the press) but because Beijing has so few rainy days, when its reputation for weather is quite bad in among Chinese cities.

There's a video of the cleared site here.

http://blog.london2012.com/

Does the 25% include the Stratford City site, which has been cleared for a few years now?

In case anyone wants to 'get on site' before they start full demolition you have until July 1st - after that the whole area will be security cordoned off and not opened again until 2012.

Anything interesting to see there?

Anything interesting to see there?

Yeah it's quite an idyllic area with the waterways and changing topography. However, it's heavily polluted and rubbish is everywhere. As long as the Olympics take what is good about the area and remove the crap it will be a really fascinating place to have an Olympic Games. From what I've seen so far they're doing their best at keeping the good points.

Published 08 May 2007 at 11:37
ODA seeks Olympic footbridge designer


The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is launching a design competition for a footbridge in the centre of the Olympic Park in east London.
The ODA is seeking multi-disciplinary teams including architects, structural engineers and landscape architects to design the footbridge which will span 26m over Carpenters Lock on the River Lea Waterway, which snakes through the heart of the Olympic Park.

The bridge will be located on the central pedestrian concourse – a major link for the Games’ patrons passing between the Olympic Stadium, the Aquatics Centre and the Basketball Arena.

In a statement, the ODA said the winning design would cater for both Games and legacy use. In legacy mode the structure will feature two permanent separate spans over the River Lea, each 6.5m wide.

During the Games a temporary 41m-span bridge will be constructed in-between and joined to the two permanent spans to create a single 54m-wide structure to accommodate visitors to the 2012 spectacular.

ODA director of infrastructure Simon Wright said: ‘The design competition will ensure that we continue to aim for the highest standards of design excellence, not just for the key venues, but throughout the entire Olympic Park.’

An OJEU notice will be posted later today (8 May) and the winning design team is expected to be announced in October.

by Max Thompson

any ideas for the temporary venues?

I was thinking that it should be dismantled after the games and be "broken" up into smaller arenas which can be rebuilt in communities.

That's what's happening.

Something has been niggling me about the Olympics and tonight it came to me.
Does anybody else remember a television programme about the Dome where the whole design and content of the 'events' within the Dome was hijacked by new labour apparatchiks hectoring talented and experienced designers to the point that some designers left. I fear the same level of background interference at the Olympics.
I recently reviewed the Munich Olympic Park by Frei Otto. This had a unified vision and it remains a major sporting and cultural venue.
Ricky Burdett is an academic and does not have the necessary design 'clout'. This project needs an Alsop, a Nouvel, a Foster to give a defined vision within which younger designers can excell.
Olympics are one of those architectural moments that need a grand vision and signature buildings (even demountable structures can be signature.)
It would be a salutary lesson if the BBC were to broadcast again the Dome programme.

From the visuals we've already seen there seems to be a very strong unified Vision. The more I see of what is being delivered for the London Olympics the more confident I'm becoming.

This project needs an Alsop, a Nouvel, a Foster to give a defined vision within which younger designers can excell.
Olympics are one of those architectural moments that need a grand vision and signature buildings (even demountable structures can be signature.)

Eh? The Olympic Park has a signature building - the Aquatic Centre by Zaha Hadid, and the Velodrome which is being designed in a starchitect competition. Plus a park designed by FOA.

Signature buildings aren't everything. The London Olympic events will be taking place in plenty of signature iconic buildings - Wembley, the Millennium Dome, Greenwich Park, Horse Guards Parade - plenty more eye candy than probably any other Olympics, including Beijing.

The background interference by politicians over the Dome was more about the contest of the 'zones', some wanted it to be about Britain, others about the year 2000, others wanted it to be more of an expo. This indecision caused delays and ended up a muddle as to what the Millennium Experience actually was about. With the Olympics, the opposite is true - you're building an athletics stadium to host athletics, a velodrome to be a velodrome, a basketball arena to host basketball. It's a completely different (I apologise) 'ball game' to the Dome.

Industry giants line up for Olympic media centre
11 May, 2007
By Vikki Miller
Bouygues and Hopkins Architects, Lend Lease and Foster, and Carillion could be on shortlist

The shortlist for the 2012 media centre, which is to be announced by the end of the month, is expected to include a host of big names.

Building understands that French contractor Bouygues has submitted a bid with Hopkins Architects and Carillion has also entered the race.

It is also understood that Lend Lease, which has been chosen to develop the Olympic village, has submitted plans with Foster + Partners. Last week Building revealed that Balfour Beatty had teamed up with developer Babcock and Brown to bid for the centre.

It had proved difficult to find firms willing to bid for the media centre as the winner was expected to secure future uses for the 1.3 million ft2 site. Many developers have raised doubts about the commercial viability of this requirement.

It is now expected that a university will take over the development once the Games are over. Both the University of East London and London Metropolitan University are thought to be serious contenders.

A Stanhope-led team, which also included architect Make, made it to the longlist but Building understands it will team up with another developer or withdraw.

A spokesperson at the Olympic Delivery Authority denied industry rumours that it might revert to a temporary structure for the media centre. He said: “The development will definitely be permanent.”

oh a university campus would be good, London doesnt really have such a thing... not too sure if that is a good or bad thing though

London 2012 Set To Reveal "New Brand" On June 4
Posted 4:34 pm ET (GamesBids.com)

The organizing committee for the London 2012 Olympic Games has announced that they will be revealing an new brand for the event in London on June 4.

No further details were released, however a new brand will most certainly include a new logo, slogan and website refreshing among other marketing asset updates.

The current London 2012 logo with the multi-color ribbon following the path of the River Thames was produced in the pre-election days while London was still competing to win hosting rights. It was revealed November 17, 2003.

Traditionally, once a city has won the bid - it becomes totally re-branded for Games purposes and eventually produces logos for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, a slogan, sport pictograms and mascots.

Work starts on 2012 Media Centre

11 May, 2007

By Angela Monaghan

Bulldozers start removing earth from the site of the future Olympic Media Centre

The first earthworks within the Olympic Park site started this week on the site of what will be the Media Centre in 2012.

Excavation of the site, in the north west of the Olympic Park, will involve stripping 8500 cubic metres of fertile top soil which will be stored and re-used in the landscaping of the park.

The Olympic Delivery Authority aims to have the majority of the Olympic Park cleared and cleaned by next summer, one of ten milestones announced by the ODA to be achieved by the 2008 Beijing Games.

More than 80,000 cubic metres of low quality soil, dug up from the Media Centre site, will be used to raise ground levels and prepare the site for the construction of the Aquatics centre in 2008.

ODA chief executive David Higgins said: “This is a very demanding programme but we continue to make significant progress in clearing the Olympic Park.

“The start of the first earthworks is another key milestone in the transformation of the area as we create one of the largest new urban parks in Europe for 150 years.”

During the 2012 Games the Media Centre will provide 24-hour facilities to around 20,000 domestic and international broadcasters, wire services, print journalists and photographers.

It is as yet unclear what the 1.3m sq ft of space will be used for after the Games

Great, the development should start to pick up from now on.

What does everyone guess the Mascot animal thingy will be? The Chinese ones are really good.

UK/England usually use a lion. Obvious guesses would be:

Lion or a unicorn or a rose... any other ideas?

We'll find out in June :)

What does everyone guess the Mascot animal thingy will be? The Chinese ones are really good.

UK/England usually use a lion. Obvious guesses would be:

Lion or a unicorn or a rose... any other ideas?

We'll find out in June :)

I'd like to see a family of morris dancing badgers.

I expect one of them will be a raven.

LonelyDwarf - I'd like to see a family of morris dancing badgers.
LMAO v.funny.

im sure whatever the mascots will be most people wont like them

Mascots are usually rubbish though. As long as the important design elements like the logo, torch and medals are done properly I couldn't really give a monkey's about the mascots.

Mmmm.....monkies.....

I got bored and quickly designed a London olympic logo :D :tongue2:

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/1155/london2012adu9.jpg

I got bored and quickly designed a London olympic logo :D :tongue2:

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/1155/london2012adu9.jpg

That's the dogs bollocks Medo! You've got my vote. It's like the newer batman vs the original tv series. Edgy. If I see another cutesy boucing teddy bear I think I'll explode if a fiery ball of hate.

AJplus.co.uk
Published 18 May 2007 at 12:06
Heritage projects face ‘catastrophe’ due to Olympics cash drain


The Olympic-fund drain could have a catastrophic effect on major heritage projects, especially in the North of England, it has been claimed in the House of Lords.
Yesterday the upper house warned of the dangers of the continued siphoning off of cash to finance the 2012 Games, in particular from sources such as the Heritage Lottery Fund, and the possibilities of serious delays to building schemes of all sizes.

Lord Faulkner of Worcester said: ‘As far as the North of England in particular is concerned, there is likely to be a five or six-year hiatus on major heritage projects.

‘No one is saying that all this good work will come to a juddering halt because of the diversion of Lottery money to pay for the Olympics, but it is undoubtedly the case that projects will have to be scaled back at least until 2012.’

According to Lord Baker of Dorking, the money available to project-funding organisations under the Heritage Link banner is expected to be reduced from £255 million to £120 million.

Among the projects under threat would be ‘1,400 schemes for churches and historic town centres from Gateshead to Great Yarmouth’.

Lord Baker said:’If the money is cut from £255 million to £120 million, there will be lots of nos in future to landscape and other projects.’

Lord Baker called on Prime-Minister-in-waiting Gordon Brown to promise ‘not to take any more’ money from the Lottery adding: ‘At the end of the day, societies and civilisations are remembered not for their athletics but for their aesthetics. They are remembered for their painting, their music, their drama, their poetry, their architecture and their landscape.’

by Richard Waite

again prob not appropriate..but if you cant build an olympic stadium with a roof then find a company that can

this stadium will cost $350 million

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k59/DURBAN2010/MosesMabhidaDurbanNight.jpg

Are there pictures of a handball stadium? I've heard there is going to be one built.

Are there pictures of a handball stadium? I've heard there is going to be one built.

Page 24 of this PDF.

http://www.london2012.org/NR/rdonlyres/D6B0BEFE-5B49-4697-B8E5-367313658EBD/0/DesignPrinciplesfortheOlympicPark.pdf

I thought that the handball arena was only Temporary, glad to see it Permanent.

Thanks for that DarJoLe, all the images have got me all hyped up again over the Olympics. Its going to be great.

Went to my mate's flat in Bow last weekend and took the oppourtunity to snap the future Olympic site. Photobucket will only host the scaled-down version, but here you are anyway:

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h126/wildheart99/stratford130507.jpg

The original is 5000x2000 if anyone can/is interested in hosting it.

^^ Wild@Heart - great pic. A bit of mindless trivia, correct me if I'm wrong, anyone, but I think you've snapped the old big breakfast house in the top left. I went on a walk around there a few years back and they were selling off old props. This pic also shows what gorgeous canals there are lying around there. Lots are half empty due to missing lock gates and the like, but when these get put back it's going to be a great corner of London. I'm very excited about that, it is a real legacy that probably wont be appreciated for about 20 years.

I thought that the handball arena was only Temporary, glad to see it Permanent.

Thanks for that DarJoLe, all the images have got me all hyped up again over the Olympics. Its going to be great.
Indeed this is excellent and represents another big improvement to Londons' currently dire, embarassing sports facilities. We will be able to host more competitions with all the benefits that brings. I think I'm right in saying we can't hold an international swimming competition at the moment because the only potential pool, Crystal Palace, has lanes that are a few inches to narrow. It's also shabby. It's so sad, how we ever let our sports facilities become so shockingly bad I have never understood.

Indeed this is excellent and represents another big improvement to Londons' currently dire, embarassing sports facilities. We will be able to host more competitions with all the benefits that brings. I think I'm right in saying we can't hold an international swimming competition at the moment because the only potential pool, Crystal Palace, has lanes that are a few inches to narrow. It's also shabby. It's so sad, how we ever let our sports facilities become so shockingly bad I have never understood.

As Sebastian Coe would say
"what were they doing or writing to make the case for sport in London 30 years ago? When some of us were raging against the selling off of playing fields and the under-investment in elite-level training and competition venues, why were the chattering classes sitting supine, allowing London to fall further and further behind not only other capital cities but behind the significantly more enlightened regional cities in this country that understood that sport could and did play a sizeable role in the economic and social regeneration of their communities."

24

Cheers

Olympic masterplanner quits
25 May, 2007
By Vikki Miller
Foreign Office Architects leaves over fears that design of Olympic park has been dumbed down

Foreign Office Architects (FOA), the creative leader of the group designing the Olympic park, has quit the masterplanning team.

The firm walked out on the consortium last week over what are understood to be fears that the design quality of the plan had been dumbed down.

A source close to the Olympic park scheme said FOA had been frustrated by the focus on budget rather than design. The source said: “They came up with great ideas that have subsequently been pared down.”

An FOA spokesperson said: “FOA has chosen to focus on competitions for specific Olympic projects, where it will be best placed to deliver value to the design of the Games and its legacy.”

The firm is still on the shortlist to design the Olympic velopark.

FOA is widely acknowledged as the creative wing of the multidisciplinary team designing the park, which also includes EDAW, Buro Happold, Allies and Morrison and HOK Sport.

Sources close to the team told Building there had been friction between FOA and the other firms for a while. A source said: “They might have stayed on if there weren’t tensions in the team. There seemed to be a different set of priorities between them all.”

It is understood that there are at least six months of work left to do on the masterplan, which is now in the detailed design phase.

A spokesperson for the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) said: “FOA helped us produce the masterplan, which is our vision and route map to 2012 and we thank them for all their hard work and help to date.”

The news of FOA’s dramatic departure will be a further blow to the ODA, which has been accused of skimping on design. Richard Rogers, the London mayor’s architectural adviser, has refused to enter any competitions for Olympic projects.

Building can also reveal that HOK Sport’s proposals for the main stadium went before the Olympic design review panel at the beginning of the month. It is understood that the designs have been significantly scaled back.

In February, the Olympic board reiterated that its priority was to deliver an Olympic stadium on time and to budget.

I'm starting to lose faith in this whole thing, if all the reports about dumbing down and bland designs are true, no doubt they're too afraid to do anything adventurous just in case the media throws a fit about how the money is being used to make extravagant stadiums etc etc. :(

I'm starting to lose faith in this whole thing, if all the reports about dumbing down and bland designs are true, no doubt they're too afraid to do anything adventurous just in case the media throws a fit about how the money is being used to make extravagant stadiums etc etc. :(

I agree. Personally I'm starting to wonder if the importance of the 'legacy' will impact on the greatness of the Games themselves. Did we bid for these games because we wanted an excuse to rejuvinate an area of East London, or to show the world the best in British architecture, sport and culture?

I think the ODA are getting the balance slightly wrong somewhere, and the idea that the Olympic stadium doesn't need a roof because most of it is getting demolished after the games sums it up really. It's that British mentality of being so scared to actually push the envelope for once.

The Games will still be a success, that I have no doubt, and I've come too far on this Olympics issue to lose all faith in it, but I still wonder if the London Olympics will be more of a 'safe' Games than one that really could make the world sit up and realise how pioneering and forward thinking Britons can be.

I think it's quite obvious that the main reason was the legacy!

I think it's quite obvious that the main reason was the legacy!

Well I hope that is explained to spectators as the reason why there is no wow factor to the Olympic Park.

There certainly will be a "wow factor" to the Olympic Park - there will be world-class sculptures in the park and high-quality design, particuarly seen in the Aquatics Centre. I'd love there to be more amazing architecture but you answered your own question: the Games are primarily about regenerating one of the poorest areas in Europe. They aren't as much about completely re-inventing the image of the city - see Barcelona and Beijing. The architecture will be "safe" in comparison to the likes of Beijing but the idea of using the Games mainly for some positive future good is entirely new and should strike a precedent in the Olympic movement. Indeed, the logo of the London Games when it is released will emphasise the uniqueness and modernity of London 2012.

Have you seen the logo?

Have you seen the logo?

We all will this monday.

Yeh, I know that. Just impatient, that's all ;-)

Now I love architecture and take a great interest in it, but I never thought one of the main objectives of the Olympics was to showcase British architecture. Sport, a legacy of sport both leading up to and beyond is point number one for me. Point 2 (Kens point 1) would be regeneration. Showcase architecture...35(???)

FOA are very high brow from my knowledge and I doubt any realistic plan would have met their needs. Just take a look at how few buildings around the world they have actually had built! They came in with money at the top entering showpiece competitions without working their way up in business. They don't seem aware of issues beyond drawing board concepts and that is dangerous. I would suggest they would be more at fault than the ODA.

Have there been any criticisms about the quality of the sporting facilities as far as the sport is concerned yet? Now that would worry me.

New Brand launched on Monday 4th June.

Just had this email sent to me


Monday, 4 June will be a big day, as we introduce the new London 2012 brand to the world.

We want you to be among the first to see it.

It's energetic. It's bright. We hope you'll be inspired to join in.

Intrigued? Sign up now on the London 2012 site at http://www.london2012.com to see the brand first.

We are also giving you four chances to preview the thinking behind the new brand in secret locations across the Internet.

We hope you'll join us.

The London 2012 Team


And, in case you want to play along, todays clue is :

"Day 1: Passion

Which London-based blog is passionate about its unique, biting brand of music, movie, TV, videogame and celebrity news, gossip and reviews?"

AJplus.co.uk
Published 31 May 2007 at 11:35
Olympics bosses call for ‘world’s best architects’ to design Athletes’ Village

http://www.villagearchitectspanel.com/media/images/visual1x.jpg

The consortium building the £2 billion Athletes’ Village for the 2012 London Olympics has called on ‘the world’s most talented architects’ to pitch for what is one of the Games’ most high-profile contracts.

In March, Lend Lease and its partners First Base and East Thames Housing Group were selected by London & Continental Railways and the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) to build the non-retail elements of the £4 billion Stratford City development.

Now, in partnership with the Architecture Foundation (AF), the Lend Lease-led consortium has issued an international call for both ‘established and emerging’ architects to design the centrepiece of Stratford City – the 4,200-home Athletes’ Village.

The AF will appoint 40 architects and practices to a panel. Those architects will then compete for commissions to design individual components of the huge village.

In a move that will be welcomed by up-and-coming practices, AF director Rowan Moore highlighted the need for new talents to throw their hats into the Olympic ring. He said: ‘The Athletes’ Village is a great opportunity for both emerging and established practices, and we will be seeking to achieve a balance between the two.

‘In some cases this will involve a collaborative approach, with smaller practices working alongside larger firms. This will enable us to deliver opportunities for a diverse range of practices to demonstrate their talents,’ added Moore.

Apparently aware of the growing controversy surrounding claims that the design of the Games is suffering due to mounting costs, the ODA appears keen to get the architectural community back on side.

An ODA spokesperson said: ‘Commitment to design excellence is essential. Creating a panel of leading architects will ensure world-class design and innovation are at the heart of our plans as we develop landmark residential properties for the Games and in legacy.’

The project brief can be downloaded from www.villagearchitectspanel.com. Practices have until 28 June to respond, with finalists being revealed at the end of July.

by Max Thompson

Now I love architecture and take a great interest in it, but I never thought one of the main objectives of the Olympics was to showcase British architecture. Sport, a legacy of sport both leading up to and beyond is point number one for me. Point 2 (Kens point 1) would be regeneration. Showcase architecture...35(???)

FOA are very high brow from my knowledge and I doubt any realistic plan would have met their needs. .

I think people are being far too complacent about seperating architecture from design from legacy. They are all inseperable. We should be very worried about this piece of news regarding the resignation of FOA. Design is not high brow it is a practical fundamental companent of any urban plan worth our time and effort!

Lets face it the political will is now purely focussed on budget and has nothing now to do with legacy, the media as usual are blind. In the short term Im sure it`ll all be fine; any tarting up of derelict industrial land is going to have a positive impact... but

You want to have long term legacy from a site this big? Then the design will be very expensive there is no way of getting round it... apart from cutting corners and leaving a mess for future generations and the poor inhabitants. It is a huge site! Massive, check out the model at the building centre, it is like a new City of London, a new West End. Design should be the pivotal point and not budget; this is where the long term legacy will be decided and again we have shyed away.

There is always the battle between architects egos and budgets though. Designing a well planned park is one thing, filling it with architectural set pieces is another. I generally support architects, but they can be a damn annoying bunch at times. I watch the Crystal Palace park regeneration closely (as I live next to it!). There, Latz and Partners are planning hot air renewable energy towers, two glasshouses have just been added along with a whole host of water features and heavy earth moving. This has precious little to do with a better designed park, but would look great. In fact some of these things get in the way of how the park is currently used. Where the money for this would come from is unclear as it wasn’t in the original plan. I think they’ve set themselves up for a fall. I could well imagine them walking out on the project, but it will be their fault as they aren’t following the brief. I can’t say for certain, but it would be entirely predictable if FOA had hoped for a whole lot more extravagance than anyone paying for it had imagined.

clues:

think blue..and think lighter blue...

http://www.londonist.com/images/Londonist07.gif

london 2012 - the passion to inspire..

just my two cents

Is that going to be what the logo will resemble then?

I hope not. Let's hope a (real) graphic designer does a better job. And doesn't include the BT Tower.

The launch is at 11am on this website.

http://www.london2012.com/about-newlook-video.html

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1132/529563413_7c61b23039_o.jpg

why oh why did i get out of bed for that logo

orange version...
http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/9864/londonex8.png (http://imageshack.us)

if they dont make vicky pollard the face of the games im gonna start a riot!

I love it.

Here is the logo in its various colours:


http://img367.imageshack.us/img367/581/london2012bluebwz5.jpg
http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/3554/london2012orangebqr6.jpg
http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/3737/london2012pinkbul1.jpg
http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/5844/london2012tealbpr6.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1132/529563413_7c61b23039_o.jpg

:sly:

looks like a logo for a kid's tv channel called ZIOZ, presumably.

how did we manage to mess this one up!?

looks like a logo for a kid's tv channel called ZIOZ, presumably.

how did we manage to mess this one up!?

Don't try to tack your obvious distate in the logo on the British people as a whole.

2 = North America
0 = Europe/Asia
1 = South America
2 = Africa
Square = Iberian Peninsula


Poor Australasia though!

Don't try to tack your obvious distate in the logo on the British people as a whole.

fair enough. which gcse art student designed this mess? and how long's the queue to slap him?

come on dan, it's an absolute shocker!!!!!

fair enough. which gcse art student designed this mess? and how long's the queue to slap him?

come on dan, it's an absolute shocker!!!!!

This is exactly what its trying to achieve. Its a break from the norm of monotonous brushstroke logos. Its a breakaway from the same bland format. Its a vibrant, electric logo with amazing eye-catching ability and will be a identification point for the youth to assemble in London in 2012. Its daring, bold and different and shows unity of the continents, which is exactly what London is, where you will find the most cultures and diversity than any other city on the planet.

2 = North America
0 = Europe/Asia
1 = South America
2 = Africa
Square = Iberian Peninsula


Poor Australasia though!

Poor Australasia? The first thing I thought was "why have they put the Olympic rings on Australia?"

This is exactly what its trying to achieve. Its a break from the norm of monotonous brushstroke logos. Its a breakaway from the same bland format. Its a vibrant, electric logo with amazing eye-catching ability and will be a identification point for the youth to assemble in London in 2012. Its daring, bold and different and shows unity of the continents, which is exactly what London is, where you will find the most cultures and diversity than any other city on the planet.

Vibrant? Electric? It looks like somebody's painted a plate with flourescent paint and dropped it on the floor. The colours are vile, the shapes are childlike and ugly, and don't get me started on the lack of a capital L in London.

What kind of modern corporate pseudo-babble is "will be a identification point for the youth to assemble in London in 2012" anyway?

I'm angry now. Very angry.

Vibrant? Electric? It looks like somebody's painted a plate with flourescent paint and dropped it on the floor. The colours are vile, the shapes are childlike and ugly, and don't get me started on the lack of a capital L in London.

What kind of modern corporate pseudo-babble is "will be a identification point for the youth to assemble in London in 2012" anyway?

I'm angry now. Very angry.

What would you have preferred? Tower Bridge in silhouette form? Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament like the 1948 Logo??

Sydney:
http://www.mapsofworld.com/olympic-trivia/images/olympic-emblem/sydney2000.gif



Athens:
http://www.mapsofworld.com/olympic-trivia/images/olympic-emblem/athens2004.gif



Beijing:
http://www.hentbol.net/portal/resimler/beijing2008.gif



London:
http://img367.imageshack.us/img367/581/london2012bluebwz5.jpg
http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/3554/london2012orangebqr6.jpg
http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/3737/london2012pinkbul1.jpg
http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/5844/london2012tealbpr6.jpg

:lol:

What would you have preferred? Tower Bridge in silhouette form? Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament like the 1948 Logo??

yes please!

Here's a larger version

http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/4938/london2012largerdi8.jpg

How much did it cost to design? 100 million? ;)

I am sure it will grow on me more in time, and besides the logo is not exactly the most important thing in the Olympics is it?

How much did it cost to design? 100 million? ;)

I am sure it will grow on me more in time, and besides the logo is not exactly the most important thing in the Olympics is it?

Its the branding which counts, and if you watched the video in darjole's link, you'd see how well the logo intergrates with the branding. The dynamic side of the advertising will appeal more than the logo will I'm sure.

Change the London 2012 Logo - Online Petition: http://www.gopetition.co.uk/online/12539.html

Sydney:
http://www.mapsofworld.com/olympic-trivia/images/olympic-emblem/sydney2000.gif



Athens:
http://www.mapsofworld.com/olympic-trivia/images/olympic-emblem/athens2004.gif



Beijing:
http://www.hentbol.net/portal/resimler/beijing2008.gif



:lol:

Ah yes a nice list of bland safe mc logos all probably designed by the same global marketing house. Looks like those made in china souveniers you can buy in any City around the world, to me it shows up the lack of progressive culture in these cities.


The London logo looks progressive, edgy and non-commercial with a knowing nod at the retro, something only a city with confidence and deep cultural roots can pull off.

yes please!

do you run a grockle shop?

The London logo looks progressive, edgy and non-commercial with a knowing nod at the retro, something only a city with confidence and deep cultural roots can pull off.

I couldn't agree more. Its not a safe and traditional, and thats more reason to like it.

I like it! It'll grow on some people who don't like it now I'm sure. Others will always hate it. That's just the way of things; they weren't going to please everybody.

It looks like a chavette with five earrings giving a chav in a "london" T-shirt a blowjob.

It looks like a chavette with five earrings giving a chav in a "london" T-shirt a blowjob.

that's no chavette - that's lisa simpson! as suggested on the bbc forums, we should petition seb coe to change the design and put a pair of millhouse glasses on the figure on the left.

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/43005000/gif/_43005619_london_new_pink_203.gif

Ah yes a nice list of bland safe mc logos all probably designed by the same global marketing house. Looks like those made in china souveniers you can buy in any City around the world, to me it shows up the lack of progressive culture in these cities.


The London logo looks progressive, edgy and non-commercial with a knowing nod at the retro, something only a city with confidence and deep cultural roots can pull off.
I don't agree. Confidence has nothing do with it. The aim was to create a unique and inclusive brand that inspired and united the world. It has failed to do that, but that does not imply we do not appreciate the effort (400,000) they have put in to ensure its unique. For people to relate to brands, they first of all need to like the brand, which most people do, but this brand doesn't welcome anybody, doesn't inspire and most importantly has failed to capture the imagination of the world.

That said I'm sure the signage and venue overlays will forever be remembered, Im just not sure it will be for the right reasons.

It has failed to do that, this brand doesn't welcome anybody, doesn't inspire and most importantly has failed to capture the imagination of the world.

WTF? It's only been out in the public domain for four hours.

I have to say though, I really like the logo and the branding.

However, this has been a PR disaster for London 2012.

I have to say though, I really like the logo and the branding.

However, this has been a PR disaster for London 2012.

far from a disaster, they've given us a logo they knew 90% of people would hate and its all people will talk about for awhile, its probably already the most downloaded thing on the net and most talked about, this is a PR master stroke!
this is how a logo should be, talked about liked and hated something no other country has had the balls to do, this will go down as the best logo of all time, the more people hate it the more im loving it, its genius :nuts:

Yes, look how many threads there are on SSC alone just devoted to this logo. Its definately a talking point :cheers:

just a reminder...im all for london 2012 and have been since 2004, its the only reason i really give a dam that the logo has failed to do what it says it should do.

London 2012 Ambassador Announced
4 June 2007
London

http://www.citizenjournalismawards.com/images/entries/main/scoopt_vicky_pollard.jpg

Vicky Pollard has been announced as the official London 2012 Games ambassador after four months of shortlisting to find one person that would be able to relate to the youth and inspire and encourage them to achieve greater things.

"I am well the correct choice. I always wanted to get invooolved with the London 2012", said the 25 year old Pollard who has recently completed a course in reading.

Pollard begins her nationwide tour in Central London and will travel to schools and educational institutions across the United Kingdom, educating the youth about the benefits of sport, and ensuring that the entire UK becomes a part of the 2012 dream.

"Its all about the kids, like my seven kids at home. They need to get involved in sport or they are well going to get a beatins!. London 2012 is only 2 years away so we well better get started."

Vicky spent most of the day celebrating her announcement and parading the press area with her new London 2012 kit.

"She is simply the best choice, an inspired choice too." said Coe. "We really brainstormed to find the ultimate person to which the youth could relate to, and Vicky is certainly on the shortlist to light the Olympic Flame."

The new London 2012 brand has been met with harsh criticizm and mixed reactions.

-CNN&N

http://www.startrek-online.net/2012.JPG

it makes you use your imagination, some see it as giving head some mention swastika i dont see either of them at all and my perverted mind is as good as anyones, my only beef with it is ithe cost of 400k

the logo has failed to do what it says it should do.

What did it say it was to do?

I think its different and represents modern, young London.

People moaned about the old logo being boring and bland, and now they have gone the total opposite, and all the old farts at the Daily Mail and BBC are in shock!!

If they had used a silhoutte of Tower Bridge or Big Ben they would have said we just harked back to the Empire and were lacking imagination and vision

if the wider general public are'nt too impressed by a crappy logo that cost £400,000 then i can't wait till they catch on to the fact that seb coe and his chums are going to spend £3-400 million on a 80,000 capacity athletics stadium,something this country needs*,and then knock two-thirds of it down.....


* maybe 80,000 is to large but we really need are large athletic stadium with a capacity of 50k+ to cope with the ticket demand of any major athletic event london wishes to hold whether it be europeans,worlds or commonwealth games......

1) My first reaction was shock! Its growing on me though and I think will work well as a digital version (eg. http://www.wolffolins.com/interactive.html).

2) as mentioned on this thread - the reaction to it has made it famous in a very short time.

3) Its much better than the old bid logo - that was pure crap.

4) I'm glad they didn't use london icons and write London with the wheel as an 'o' etc.

5) The reaction to it might mean a redesign before the olympics - if so i hope they do it as swiftly as possible.

if the wider general public are'nt too impressed by a crappy logo that cost £400,000 then i can't wait till they catch on to the fact that seb coe and his chums are going to spend £3-400 million on a 80,000 capacity athletics stadium,something this country needs*,and then knock two-thirds of it down.....


* maybe 80,000 is to large but we really need are large athletic stadium with a capacity of 50k+ to cope with the ticket demand of any major athletic event london wishes to hold whether it be europeans,worlds or commonwealth games......

most of the stadium will probably be temporary or built without complications in sections so that it can be knocked down or be rebuilt elsewhere..
the price tag is prob around 500 million pounds..for that price you can get two fully covered athletics stadia of 80,000+

it would be more suited to a winter olympics in my opinion, the 0 resembles mountains.
its obviously been designed by some posh old people who think they know what "cool" is, but by the looks of it they we're probably into what was cool in the 80's and havent moved on.

the price tag is prob around 500 million pounds..for that price you can get two fully covered athletics stadia of 80,000+

Well, what do you expect; if they can't even get a somewhat decent logo for £400,000. We have witness the same amateuristic approach as for the Millenium Dome and Wembley. This is always the problem if they bring together some public sector people that have never worked in the real world, in the real economy, and they suddenly have to manage a huge project. I think it is a safer bet to be a London 2012 sceptic than supporter.

JGG - Wolff Olins (http://www.wolff-olins.com/) the designer of this logo HAS worked in the real world. He's very famous in the 'real' world. He's certainly not public sector.

In life its always safer to be a sceptic than a supporter but if we were all like that we'd still be living in the jungle.

I think they should have involved the public at a much earlier stage of the brands evolution. A consultation and maybe even voting process would have avoided problems at launch.

JGG - Wolff Olins (http://www.wolff-olins.com/) the designer of this logo HAS worked in the real world. He's very famous in the 'real' world. He's certainly not public sector..

Sure, Wolff Olins like any sub-contractor that will work on the Olympics is part of the private sector. And that is where it goes wrong, you have people with only public sector experience that need to manage private sector companies. This is where all the PPPs go wrong as well. For the private sector there is no easier victim than the public sector. They are easy to outsmart.

Btw, if you check the specialist graphic designer sites, you can read about all that is wrong with the logo, it is not just a matter of taste.

Yet for me the biggest failure is how they could have gotten the ball so wrong in not getting proper focus group feed-back. For a project where you really need to rely on the public's interest and goodwill, you really can't afford to get that wrong. It is just unforgivable. The last time a company got it that wrong was with the introduction of New Coke, and see how many heads rolled over that and how fast they put it right. Because of the widespread involvement of politicians, unfortunately I think it will be much harder for London 2012 to cut the losses. Yet it's a basic rule of business and that is what they should do - if the clients don't like it, adjust.

I think they should have involved the public at a much earlier stage of the brands evolution. A consultation and maybe even voting process would have avoided problems at launch.

uh no thats when you get design by commitee, this isnt about the opening hours of a NHS clinic this is art... an artists vision is always more fun.

uh no thats when you get design by commitee, this isnt about the opening hours of a NHS clinic this is art... an artists vision is always more fun.

No, that is not what you get. Any properly run company will do surveys on focus groups before they launch a brand. That does not mean they take the most popular, but it is rare to see a company select a brand that is despised by 85% of the clients and not really understood (other than for giving head). OK, maybe they are radical and extremely daring, or just plain stupid. I think it is the latter.

consumerist family friendly / bland corporate with a fusion of OTT Disney that is what the olympics has been for the past 2 decades, no doubt formed by market led research. I can see a very real change here and I like it.

family friendly / bland corporate with a fusion of OTT Disney that is what the olympics has been for the past 2 decades, no doubt formed by market led research. I can see a very real change here and I like it.

Yes but 85% of the clients despise it, and that is a pretty large majority.

It also has a lot of technical flaws, so the UK graphic design community dislikes it as well (just check out their blogs like newstoday)

Regarding "change", a turd would have been change as well, and I am sure some people here on this forum would have argued they like it, the bottom line is that their brand introduction has been ridiculed by the clients. That is a pretty big misstep.

Despise?!?! Haha more like mocking. An important distinction... and then the tables turn and they all end up looking like old stick in muds its the same old story

Wolff Olins also gave us that curious pan figure etched onto the side of 'new' BT phone boxes some years ago. This figure was universally derided by the design community but we were accused of being fogeys and told it would grow on us. It hasn't but it continues to visually pollute the capital.
And now they have pulled off the same trick again for vast sums of money. A logo that is near universally derided that will visually pollute everything to do with the Olympics for the next 5 years and make us a laughing stock. This time we should boycott everything with this puerile logo on.

Wolff Olins also gave us that curious pan figure etched onto the side of 'new' BT phone boxes some years ago. This figure was universally derided by the design community but we were accused of being fogeys and told it would grow on us. It hasn't but it continues to visually pollute the capital.
And now they have pulled off the same trick again for vast sums of money. A logo that is near universally derided that will visually pollute everything to do with the Olympics for the next 5 years and make us a laughing stock. This time we should boycott everything with this puerile logo on.

And they got that £200 mio rebranding of Abbey National completely wrong; now they have been fired by them. As they say, "no IT manager ever got fired for buying IBM", so LOCOG went for a blue chip name in the industry where most of the creative talent left since they were taken over by the US mammoth Omnicom. A pity they did not realize this, particularly because there is much good creative talent around in the UK.

consumerist family friendly / bland corporate with a fusion of OTT Disney that is what the olympics has been for the past 2 decades, no doubt formed by market led research. I can see a very real change here and I like it.

I completely agree 100%. A brand consultancy is briefed by the client, afterall; and this brand is exactly what London 2012 wanted out of a look and logo for the Games.

Don't blame Wolf Ollins for coming up with something you don't like. Blame LOCOG for failing to have a brief you agree with.

So what if something doesnt work out, all this talk of disgust and shock is pretty fucking pathetic. Design community?! Of course they will have a professional opinion but none of this matters.

Iconography, trends, movements and art is not created by commitee or by professionals it just happens. Usually from small niche groups outside of mainstream society usually the youth, it certainly doesnt come from joe public they are always the last to jump on to the bandwagon and when they do they will do it with out a glance to the hypocrisy of their previous mockery.

Now Im not suggesting this logo is in anyway a new punk movement I am just illustrating that is it stupid to be so angry at something like this especially when it is middle england and the 'professionals' who are doing all the talking.

It is certainly a change from the very safe corporate and forgettable process of the past few olympics and this fits in very well with the new ideology

I agree they probably thought Wolff Olins was the most sure bet.

@POTTO - you need some creative/vision freedom I agree. I also agree that a commitee can water things down to their lowest denominator BUT the public is the target audience so I agree with JGG that something of this scale/importance should be market tested using focus groups and go through several 'gates' before reaching the market proper.

There should be no surprises for them (within reason) about the publics reaction.

'New' coke was dealt with swiftly - I wonder if the London 2012 will react and adapt to the publics reaction or push forward as they are.

I'll be interested to see. If they stick with this design then I really hope it grows on people. i think logos are an important part of a brand and act as 'a flag to gather around'. If people don't like the logo then we have problems.

Its been asked before but will there be a mascot?

Its been asked before but will there be a mascot?

Yes, there will be and it has been announced:

http://www.thespoof.com/news/spoof.cfm?headline=s1i19795

Mascots aren't announced until two years before the games, and I hope they are just as forward thinking and creative as the branding has been and not rely on tired old British cliches.

I thought I'd sleep on this before commenting. It's a bit shocking and it's certainly not like the safe, but very tired old tat from Sydney, Athens, Beijing. I reckon this represents London far better than anything with tower bridge or even the gerkin in. It fits well with new media, animation, lighting etc. and it wouldn't look so bad on a t-shirt either. I very much like that they've used white for the olympic rings rather than going for the same old mix of colours although I'm a bit surprised they could do that. It's brave, and personally I think it works.

great mascot

it makes you use your imagination, some see it as giving head some mention swastika i dont see either of them at all and my perverted mind is as good as anyones, my only beef with it is ithe cost of 400k

I have to say, i spotted the 2012 thing instantly...soon after that i saw a swastika......i only spotted the blow job thing after it was pointed out on this forum, but its all i see now.

And my god, there are more threads about this logo than anything i've ever seen

I want to like it. How I want to like it. And just when I've nearly come round to forcing myself to like it, I catch sight of it again and it still just jars.

I admire any attempt to be different, expressive, progressive and bold - and if this were a logo for just about anything else I think I'd be more sympathetic. But this is the Olympics.

The Olympic emblem has to appeal to more than just a small group of people who 'get' the blatent 1980s retro referencing (and anyone who saw the accompanying promo film can't have failed to the resemblance the whole visual identity has to the kind of graphics used for the opening titles of Top Of The Pops in the mid-1980s, or those for Going Live, or teen mag Look-In, or Max Headroom, the Dire Straits video 'Money For Nothing' etc.).

It has to appeal to more than just a few young people who don't remember that kind of design approach from the 1980s because they're too young to have lived through them, and therefore think it's fresh and new.

It has to appeal to more than the few people who genuinely like and will buy Topman's latest collection, which looks like it's been looted wholesale from 1988, and can be seen in abundance in Shoredtich and Brick Lane any given weekend.

The Olympics aren't just for the young and for bleeding-edge hipsters. They're for everybody, and the logo needs to reflect that. And yes, sometimes that will entail a leaning towards blandness, because that's the only way you'll appeal to the maximum number of people. (Which the IOC would want to do in any case, if only for sake of merchandise sales). There are plenty of opportunities for more original, daring expression but I don't think designing the Olympic emblem is one of them. And everyone knows London is cool, it doesn't need to try to prove it like this. Any city that tries too hard to be cool ends up not being so, in any case.

Having said all that, it's amazing how many weak Olympic logos there have been. Atlanta's was terrible, Sydney's has dated poorly, Montreal is uninspired, Seoul's is messy. I liked Turin 2006 - very simple but very contemporary at the same time. Athens 2004 was good, too - elegant, discreet, 'Greek' but not cheesily so, and with a contemporary take on an ancient symbol. Barcelona 1992, however, is hard to beat. It was just very.... Barcelona.

The flag of the Olympic Games has five interlocking rings (blue, yellow, black, green, and red) on a white ground. The rings represent the five parts of the world that were joined together in the Olympic movement: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe. The motto of the Olympic Games is "Citius, altius, fortius" (meaning "Faster, higher, stronger").

WikiAnswers

I don't like the idea of taking away the Olympic colours. The idea of any logo looking futuristic and modern sounds good but the Olympic Games is full of history and heritage and I feel it must continue to retain some part in the image of the Olympics.

The Olympics aren't just for the young and for bleeding-edge hipsters. They're for everybody, and the logo needs to reflect that. And yes, sometimes that will entail a leaning towards blandness, because that's the only way you'll appeal to the maximum number of people.

People arent going to watch or visit the Olympics because of a logo?!?!? Very strange idea. This isnt a wank fest for a City to indulge in for 2 weeks so all the arm chair viewers can feel some sort of collective patriotic pride with their official mugs and teaspoons.

We didnt win the right to hold the event for that reason we won because we promised to inspire a new generation to take up sport. So yes sorry if all these middle-aged people out there are suggesting that they too need a logo to inspire them to get do some excercise then I would suggest that its a bit of a lost cause... but attempting to aim squarely at the urban youth is a worthwhile risk.

People arent going to watch or visit the Olympics because of a logo?!?!? Very strange idea. This isnt a wank fest for a City to indulge in for 2 weeks so all the arm chair viewers can feel some sort of collective patriotic pride with their official mugs and teaspoons.

Errr, what is the point of brands then? They do have an influence, even on our taste, smell and visual perception. And wasn't it LOCOG who said that this was the single most important announcement since they won the games?

We didnt win the right to hold the event for that reason we won because we promised to inspire a new generation to take up sport. So yes sorry if all these middle-aged people out there are suggesting that they too need a logo to inspire them to get do some excercise then I would suggest that its a bit of a lost cause... but attempting to aim squarely at the urban youth is a worthwhile risk.

Yes, but that is exactly where it went wrong. Have you read the blogs? Have you not seen how the youth has reacted? They have derided the logo more than any other age group. Of course, who would not have expected that, with a multinational media group such as Omnicom (which by the way is larger than the Disney you do not seem to like) trying to prescribe what should be cool and dragging in all the top brass politicians to deliver marketing hyperbole. I fully agree with you that they should have targeted the youth, but clearly they missed that goal completely. The principle is pretty good, no stupid references to landmarks and the stuff like that, I even like the concept behind the logo, but the execution is the poorest I have ever seen. The launch and execution is simply amateuristic. Execution has nothing to do with artistic or creative values, the logo can have all of that, it is about getting your target groups on your side instead of them being opposed to you.

The teaser videos were the cheesiest thing I have ever seen. Actors (with as many regional accents as possible) saying things like - "Passion... ye, I feel very passionate... um... ye... when i get up at half time when match of the day is on... ha ha... and um... make a cup of tea... I feel very passionate." It was complete rubbish.

I think the brand values are fine and I support them. The logo itself is still settling in my head. In its favour:
- bold, progressive, brave and original
- will work well in digital format
- doesn't use land marks to spell letters (thank god!)
- creates a strong reaction in people
- I like the white olympic rings
- not cliched

Against:
- the word 'London' is almost lost
- difficult to remember how it looks
- might be difficult to put on non-digital things
- most people don't like/'get' it

i is like 65 and black belt karate..must have paid them a fortune if they paid 400,000 for the logo

I think the brand values are fine and I support them. The logo itself is still settling in my head. In its favour:
- will work well in digital format


What do you mean, that it causes seizures and that it violates the Ofcom guidelines?

For me at this stage I associate the logo with one single word:

AMATEURISM

That is probably also what will be the constant thread through the 2012 Olympic Games. So in that respect the logo/brand is indeed a good reflection of the substance.

Examples of how it will be used during the Games.

http://moblog.co.uk/blogs/15091/moblog_e09bcfb6541b4.jpg

The Paralympic logo.

http://moblog.co.uk/blogs/15091/moblog_8249c85530c04.jpg

it looks horrible as an overlay...reminds me more of a swastika now! there is something angry about the logo!

this is much better


http://www.fifa.com/mm/archive/cp/19131/original.jpg
http://cache.gettyimages.com/xc/72247813.jpg?v=1&c=MS_GINS&k=2&d=8AF8AF6A335E5B0819094A1ED08222F3
http://cache.gettyimages.com/xc/72247814.jpg?v=1&c=MS_GINS&k=2&d=8AF8AF6A335E5B08D34781CB60D50853
http://www.fifa.com/mm/archive/cp/19137/original.jpg

Examples of how it will be used during the Games.

http://moblog.co.uk/blogs/15091/moblog_e09bcfb6541b4.jpg



It looks very good when it's on things. The textures and the colours of the background tend to dim down the garishness of the pinks/greens/oranges. I think it'll work well in context.

I think it's a big shame that I haven't seen pictures like the ones above in the press as I think some people (not all) would be less adverse to it if they'd seen these.

They should have made more of where it'll be used rather than just the brand itself which is shocking isolated from context. That was the big mistake of the 2012 team, no the logo istelf imho.

The head of New Media at LOCOG has gone on the defensive. Comes across as quite a passionate guy (although I expect some will say arrogant). Good for him I say.

Being bold
Alex, Head of New Media at London 2012

05th Jun 07, 15:10
I came back from our brand launch late last night, a little the worse for wear, with a big smile on my face. I was, and remain, extremely proud of a first rate group of colleagues who have worked tirelessly for the past two months to stage a major event for two audiences of 700 key stakeholders and members of the world’s media that went off without a hitch, to release a brand that wasn’t leaked despite intense media interest and to deliver a huge amount of physical and digital material to stakeholders, staff, the media, and partners faultlessly. The spirit here is fantastic.

What we hope people will appreciate in time is that we have embarked on one of the biggest branding projects in this decade. We have built a brand identity which has over 40,000 elements, which will evolve over the coming months and years in many smart ways. A brand that unites the Olympic and Paralympic Games and which can work with partners, stakeholders, and for the first time ever, non-commercial stakeholders too. A brand which is flexible enough to render in multiple different formats on multiple platforms.

It’s not about the shape. It’s not about the colours. It’s about what we can do with it - there is a lot more to see, and you’ll see it soon.

In the course of playing with it over the past few weeks our new media team has enjoyed playing with the flexibility that the whole system around the brand offers.

I’ll let some of our output do the talking.

People who came to the launch yesterday had a sneak preview of a simple mobile application. We’re launching some new functionality at the end of next week using a different treatment of the brand. And our full website will be up in July with yet another treatment. We’re very excited.

Most of all this is a brand to live up to which will force us to deliver a games in a way which no other host city has ever done - not a comfortable blazer badge with “endearing” qualities or cute London skylines but a big statement of intent.

We said we’d be bold. We will be. Would you want it any other way?

Seb Coe explains it’s everyone’s Games:

http://blog.london2012.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/seb_everyones-2012.jpg

Ade Adepitan:

http://blog.london2012.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/ade-adepitan.gif

LOCOG Chief Exec Paul Deighton and the logo on a mobile phone:

http://blog.london2012.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/paul-deighton-mobile.gif

^^

I like his title " being bold". If he were really bold he would cut the losses and pull the brand and show the audience / public he cares. They could turn a media disaster into a media success this way.

Apparently there are some "emergency" meetings going on this morning on what to do. If this petition keeps its pace, at some point they will no longer be able to disregard it. It's better to deal with it now.

^^

I like his title " being bold". If he were really bold he would cut the losses and pull the brand and show the audience / public he cares. They could turn a media disaster into a media success this way.

Media success? The press would rip into it and say that's £400,000 down the drain for scrapping an entire year's work. I'd hold LOCOG in higher esteem if they dig their heels in and not relent to be honest.

They've got a new brand and new typeface which they can easily adapt and blandify and tone down to appease the masses. To simply scrap the logo without showing how it can be re-rendered is the worst thing they could do.

It would be a victory for the whingers and Daily Mail readers of this country if the logo isn't at least given a chance - those who sit on their arses and say their three year old could have done better, those who have been negative about every aspect of the Olympic project since its inception. I'd rather have a loud, controversial logo (that I think will be a grower) than let the naysayers who are negative about everything get their way.

Now I know that not everyone who dislikes the logo fits this description, but I still think it should be given a chance; let's see what it can do, not just what it is. More pictures like the ones DarJoLe posted please!!

As I said, I really think they made a mistake in not launching some of the peripheral designs that will surround the logo and not showing the public how it will look in context. Which is a shame.

It would be a victory for the whingers and Daily Mail readers of this country if the logo isn't at least given a chance - those who sit on their arses and say their three year old could have done better, those who have been negative about every aspect of the Olympic project since its inception. I'd rather have a loud, controversial logo (that I think will be a grower) than let the naysayers who are negative about everything get their way.

Now I know that not everyone who dislikes the logo fits this description, but I still think it should be given a chance; let's see what it can do, not just what it is. More pictures like the ones DarJoLe posted please!!

As I said, I really think they made a mistake in not launching some of the peripheral designs that will surround the logo and not showing the public how it will look in context. Which is a shame.
I look forward to its evolution. There is still no way in hell I'm missing the 2012 games, awful logo or not.

Media success? The press would rip into it and say that's £400,000 down the drain for scrapping an entire year's work. I'd hold LOCOG in higher esteem if they dig their heels in and not relent to be honest.

They've got a new brand and new typeface which they can easily adapt and blandify and tone down to appease the masses. To simply scrap the logo without showing how it can be re-rendered is the worst thing they could do.

DarJoLe, I disagree.

Firstly, the £400,000 is just for the design concept. The real money that is going to be spend is on the actual rebranding, ranging from business cards to the buildings. That is why marketing agencies often provide the design concept for free. The money they make is on the implementation. I am sure Omnicom, with over 60,000 employees and a few billions of turn-over will gladly reimburse the £400,000 - for them this is peanuts. The worst would be to throw good money after bad money and no to move into the much more expensive implementation stage.

Secondly, LOCOG needs 750 mio from sponsors. This money is harder to raise if the logo that the sponsors will need to use creates negative associations amongst the public/clients. If the logo were not to be used for corporate advertising, I may agree that they could sit it out. But the large corporates they are targeting all have sophisticated brand monitoring in place, and it is unlikely that they are going to be eager to associate themselves with what is now a ridiculed brand.

Thirdly, to blandify and go for gradual change, is a measure for nothing and is actually very expensive. First they need some time to manage expectations. They need to tell people there will be no landmarks in the logo because London is already well known and does not need that. They need to tell people they do not want to go for a mickey mouse logos of the past and want to put London 2012 in an innovative daylight. They have not done any of this. They raised expectations massively last week with a super hype but they did not manage them. They need to take the logo off-air to manage expectations.

Fourthly, the best thing to do when you have a product or marketing disaster is to admit it as soon as possible and to show you really listen to your clients. Remember how well Perrier defended its brand successfully by pulling back all its water from shops when only a fraction of it was somewhat polluted? As a corporate you stand up and say to the public in an honest way "look we made a mistake, please give us an opportunity to put it right", the reception is usually very positive.

I am not dishing this up, as part of my job I used to manage two pan-European brands and I have had my own share of troubles with it. What I have learned is that when things go wrong, you have to be brave and just cut the losses. It is very hard to dump a brand which you have nurtured for a long time, but sometimes it is the best solution.

What do you mean, that it causes seizures and that it violates the Ofcom guidelines?

For me at this stage I associate the logo with one single word:

AMATEURISM

That is probably also what will be the constant thread through the 2012 Olympic Games. So in that respect the logo/brand is indeed a good reflection of the substance.

I completely agree.
There is something very queer about this discussion of the logo.
On a site which is about large buildings, structures and infrastructures designed by professional designers who, certainly in the case of architects, form one of the tightest design communities in the world, professionalism is mocked.
The fact that the logo looks like a cheap flyer for a club is praised by people with little or no design education as reflecting the current youth zeitgeist.
Sadly it reflects as you say the substance rather than the hype of these games.

You sound like an old man.

Published 07 June 2007 at 11:31
Bishop blasts ‘identikit’ Olympic bridges

Design for London director Peter Bishop has attacked the Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA’s) proposal to use a single Arup design as the template for all but one of the 2012 Olympic Park’s bridges.
Bishop warned that the ODA’s decision to hold only one design-led competition – for the Carpenter’s Lock footbridge on the River Lee waterway – and to rely on a ‘one-bridge-fits-all’ strategy for the remaining 31 bridges would have serious ramifications.

Bishop said: ‘The Olympics is also about providing something amazing for London – a legacy for the future – and you can’t separate out the design for bridges. You can’t divorce that from the overall design strategy of the park.

‘We must not be left with something that constrains us unnecessarily. A bridge should be a beautiful, joyful structure in the park and it is important we don’t lose that opportunity,’ he added.

Aside from the Carpenter’s Lock bridge, the park’s 13 remaining footbridges, five land bridges and 14 road bridges have been lumped together in seven lots according to function and geography.

Referring to those lots, an ODA spokesman defended the decision to use a single design. He said: ‘Each bridge will be designed on its own merits and worked up by the team that wins each lot.

‘But it is fair to say that the design of the park’s infrastructure will be by a construction-led consortium. The logistics of having design competitions for 30-plus bridges is just not feasible,’ he added.

The attack by Bishop – who has the final say on all design decisions taken by the London Development Agency and Transport for London – on the ODA’s single-bridge policy adds considerable weight to concerns expressed by CABE at a design review last month.

The quango issued a lukewarm response to the Arup design and said: ‘There is a case for extending the scale parameters that limit the bridges to flat structures to allow for a vertical expression of the design.’

Bishop was unconvinced by the ODA’s assertion that the Carpenter’s Lock footbridge ‘underlined [its] commitment to design and innovation’.

‘It is never acceptable that time constraints should preclude design,’ he added.

by Max Thompson