London Olympics Hockey Centre - Venue Guide
00:01 01 Jan 2009
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With planning still in its early days, the 2012 Hockey Centre will be a venue to watch as cost pressures and deadlines bear down on the final designs.
Key facts
- Architect: Designers being sought
- Contractors: Bid process yet to begin
- Construction cost: £19m (2004 bid figure)
- Start date: 2010
- Scheduled completion date: 2011
The Hockey Centre will be to the north west of the Olympic Park, next to the press centre and north of the handball arena. In legacy it will move north to Eton Manor.
The temporary centre will have two pitches where spectators will be able to cheer on hockey, Paralympic five-a-side football and Paralympic seven-a-side football.
Preliminary plans suggest there will be 20,000 seats, divided into 15,000 by the main competition pitch and 5,000 by the second pitch.
Design details
The search for architects is to commence in 2009, with designs to be completed by the end of the year.
Olympic organisers want two pitches and to be able to relocate the centre to another area after the Games. Plans specify the centre should move to the north of Olympic Park in legacy-mode to join facilities in Eton Manor. The legacy hockey centre would have 5,000 permanent seats that could be increased to 10,000 for major events.
Construction challenges
Presently the hockey centre site is home to the North Site Treatment Centre, which is washing 750 tonnes of soil a day. This will increase when a second machine is up and running in spring 2009.
Olympic bosses want construction work to start in 2010, which will give the bid winner one of the shortest deadlines for a new venue at Olympic Park.
The successful bidder will be under immense pressure to batten down costs, as it is unlikely much of the contingency budget will be left so close to the major venues’ 2011 completion deadlines.
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