Beijing National Stadium

Beijing National Stadium is a stadium in Beijing, China. It is officially called the National Stadium and also known as the Bird's Nest (鸟巢). The stadium was build to be the main venue during the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. The stadium cost US$423 million. A shopping mall and a hotel are planned to be built. This will increase use of the stadium. There was trouble attracting events, football and otherwise, after the Olympics. The eastern and western stands of Beijing National Stadium are higher than northern and southern stands. This is in order to improve sightlines. A 24-hour per day rainwater collector is near the stadium. After water is purified, it is used throughout and around the stadium. Pipes were placed under the playing surface to gather heat in the winter to warm the stadium and coldness in the summer to cool the stadium. The stadium's design originally could fit until 100,000 people in their maximum capacity. During the building phase, near 9,000 seats were removed from the design due the security and logistics factors. After the 2008 Summer Olympics,a near batch of another 11.000 temporary seats were removed. Now the stadium can support a maximum public of 80.000 people. The stadium hosted the 2009 Race of Champions. In July 2010, the stadium hosted a friendly football match between Premier League team Birmingham City and Beijing Guoan. In August 2011, the Bird's Nest hosted the Supercoppa Italiana. This was the stadium's second in three years. The 2015 World Championships in Athletics took place at the Beijing National Stadium. The venue was the first Summer and Winter Olympics main venue as also hosted the Opening and Closing ceremonies during the 2022 Winter Olympics and 2022 Winter Paralympics also held in Beijing. References