Guangdong Olympic Stadium
Guangdong Olympic Stadium is a 80,012-seat facility located on a 30-hectare site, with a total building area of around 145,000 sq m. Facilities include a 260 m by 200 m oval-shaped stadium structure with standard track lanes, a soccer field, an arena and a series of practice gymnasiums. Also provided are VIP boxes, a seven-storey guest house and car parking, servicing and supporting facilities.
             Design for the overall stadium complex was carried out by NEB Design Group, a consortium that includes US-based design architect Ellerbe Becket, project architect Nixon & Nixon, and architects of record at the Architectural Design and Research Institute of the South China University of Technology. The main contractor is the Guangzhou Province Construction Group Ltd. Total cost of the project by its 1999 estimate is about RMB1 billion.
            Guangzhou is often dubbed China's Flower City and the stadium structure is accordingly designed to resemble the mumian flower (木棉花); the city's floral emblem. At the same time, the smooth rhythm of the gently undulating stadium roof provides an impression of a waving silk ribbon when viewed from far away. This roof has a covered area of about 32,000 sq m and with a total weight of about 9,500 tons, including the main steel frame and the decking materials. It is supported by 21 four-legged column towers, representing the entrance into the 21st Century. To form the main frame of the roof, a pair of cantilever steel truss frames is placed on top of each column tower. Each pair of trusses is further linked up to the adjacent trusses by secondary truss systems to form the on average four-metre-deep deep roof frame.
           The main trusses slightly tilt inward and cantilever above the field side for about 52 m and outward for 10 m. At the outward tip, each pair of trusses is tied down by a pair of 300 mm diameter cable stays attached to the lower part of the column tower. Each column tower measures 8 m by 4 m at the stand level and has a clearance of about 13 m from the upper part of the stand to the underside of each cantilevered truss. The column towers are constructed of Grade 35 concrete.
          Other main features of the stadium structure are the elegantly arched column clusters and rib beams that support the stands. There are altogether 12 sets of column clusters, most of which feature different clearances, shapes and sections. Very stringent quality and dimensional control was thus required during the design and casting process for these columns. To ensure accuracy of the design and dimensional control, all structural elements in the project were surveyed and laid out using computer software such as AutoCAD.
         The construction period allowed for this project is around 33 months and works have been phased into roughly three stages. The first 16 months was for general foundation works and the stadium structural works in reinforced concrete. It took another 12 months for the installation of the steel roof structure and related decking works. The remaining period is for final touch-ups, services installation and other external or ancillary works.
         The stadium is expected to open on schedule for the October athletic meet.

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Guangzhou Gymnasium
 This project is also a support facility for the 9th People Republic of China Athletic Meet for competition, training and residence purposes. The gymnasium complex comprises a main stadium, a practice gymnasium, an activities centre for the public, an administration building, an athlete’s residence, roadways and other service and supporting facilities. The complex covers about 24 hectares of land. Besides serving as a sports facility, the gymnasium can also be used as an integrated cultural and recreation centre for the general public.
        The largest structure in the complex is the 10,020-seat main stadium, which is a 39,500 sq m structure fully-enclosed with a roof spanning 160 m lengthwise and 110 m across. The practice gymnasium is 151 m by 70 m with a covered area of about 19,400 sq m. The activities centre is the smallest of the three large-span structures, with a covered area of 9,050 sq m and spans of about 140 m by 30 m.
        All the three structures are designed with a arched steel truss girder across the length as the main supporting frame. Multi-foci spine trusses span from the reinforced concrete perimeter wall to the central main truss to form the stadium structure's elliptical domes. The roof is clad with an aluminum-framed double-layer translucent plastic sheet to allow the best use of natural light during daytime events.
        The three stadiums are partially built below grade and the effect of buoyancy is catered for by the provision of a series of anchor piles. Other geotechnical difficulties encountered during construction included limestone caves in the subsoil, active ground water, and strata of loose ground and soft clay. Foundation systems employed are mainly 1 m to 2 m diameter hand-dug caissons for the stadium structure, which is seated on a reinforced concrete raft and tied down to ground with 150 mm mini-piles to resist the buoyancy and uplifting effect.

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