 Venue: Peking University Gymnasium (Table Tennis venue for the 2008 Beijing Olympics
Location: Peking University
Total land surface: 26,900 sq m
Seats: 6,000 permanent and 2,000 removable
Competitions: Table Tennis
Peking University Gymnasium in the southeastern part of Peking University(PKU) will host the Table Tennis events. The gymnasium has a floor space of 26900 square metres and 8000 spectator seats and is scheduled to be completed by August 2007 and will be the first large gymnasium in PKU's history.
When planning for the gymnasium construction, a 200-year-old historic site was found. According to the original plan, a Qing-style courtyard named Zhibei Ziyuan was to be moved as a whole to another location. Then a student found in the historic record that the courtyard is the only remains of a Qing Dynasty park belonging to a prince. The seven ancient trees outside the courtyard are all more than a century old.
When the discovery was reported to the Beijing Municipal Addministration of Cultural Heritage, the decision to protect the courtyard and the trees was made, leading to a change of gymnasium design. The underground part of the gymnasium hasd been moved two metres east to keep it away from the roots of the precious trees. Waterproof interlayer has been built between the roots and the gymnasium to prevent water loss from the roots. Protective facilities have also been built around the trees in case building materials fall from above. |
