Swim Center in London by Zaha Hadid

One of the symbols of the planned Olympic Games in London 2012 will be the swimming pool designed by Zaha Hadid, which will be located right at the entrance to the venue and can be seen by every visitor to the Olympics. However, due to financial difficulties, the stadium had to be drastically reduced (from 35,000 m² to 4,000 m², from 20,000 to 15,000 spectators). The beautifully undulating roof, however, has been preserved. The idea of the serpentine roof of the stadium inspired by the liquid geometry of flowing water won the competition against other designs in February 2005. Richard Rogers, who co-chaired the council voting on the competition designs, said of the project: “this building has an extraordinary sculptural quality that creates a marvelous structure to visit and attracts people to East London. It will set a standard for architectural quality in this key regenerated area.” The center for water sports will ultimately feature two fifty-meter pools (training and competition) and a diving pool (which is now part of the hall with the competition pool). The training pool is now concealed under a pedestrian bridge to save space for the costly roof structure. Construction of the pools will begin in mid-2008 and they are expected to be completed a year before the start of the 2012 Olympics. The new pool will be smaller than the one in Sydney and the one currently being built in Beijing. Link>