National Stadium Tokyo Building Winner, Japanese 2020 Arena, News

New National Stadium Tokyo Designs

Sports Arena Building Japan: Winner – design by Kengo Kuma and by Toyo Ito, Architects

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Stadium Building Sustainability

20 May 2017

Plywood at site of new Tokyo Olympic Stadium

Design: Kengo Kuma & Associates

Tropical Forest Timber at New National Stadium Tokyo

17 + 16 Jan 2016

Tokyo Olympic Stadium Architect Denies Plagiarising Zaha Hadid

Kengo Kuma defends his design:

Tokyo 2020 Olympic stadium architect Kengo Kuma rejects accusations that he stole the design from Zaha Hadid, reports The Guardian today.

This picks up on some details mentioned in The Telegraph, 13 Jan 2016, “geometry of the stadium bowl, the ground level spectators’ entrance, the internal planning, structural layout, landscape design, access strategies, service access and other components are considered to be virtually identical to the original design.”

At a press conference in Tokyo on Friday. Kengo Kuma also denies that discrimination against foreigners had played a part in the decision to scrap the Zaha Hadid design.

New National Stadium Tokyo design by Kengo Kuma & Associates:

The accusation is not new, but has been fleshed out and made official by ZHA’s issued report. Back on 22nd December 2015 we reported that Zaha was claiming the Kengo Kuma design has a similar shape and layout to ZHA’s proposal:

The architect said there were “remarkable similarities of our original detailed stadium layout and our seating bowl configuration with those of the design announced today.”

The background to this is that Japanese architect Kengo Kuma (and other celebrated designers such as Toyo Ito, Fumihiko Maki and Sou Fujimoto) criticised Zaha’s original design.

Also consider the logistics: ZHA worked on the project for two years, while Kengo Kuma had just 14 weeks to devise a design. As an architect (working in studios since 1987) 14 weeks would be tight to properly design a house or small office. To design a major stadium building in that time is frankly preposterous.

For reference: New National Stadium Tokyo Design by Zaha Hadid Architects, published September 18, 2015 ; updated on November 4, 2015 – selection of images below :

Reference: Fumihiko Maki: Architect, “Why Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium Should be Scrapped”, published on 4 Feb 2014:
Film on YouTube

In an article dated 17 Jan 2016 The Guardian says, “The most withering criticism has come from the Japanese architect Arata Isozaki….In a long open letter sent to the Japan Sports Council (JSC) in November, the 83-year-old said Hadid’s design looked like “a turtle waiting for Japan to sink so that it can swim away….The sight left me in despair….If the stadium gets built the way it is, Tokyo will surely be burdened with a gigantic white elephant.”

15 Jan 2016

New National Stadium Tokyo Design by Zaha Hadid Architects

Controversy Over New Olympic Stadium in Tokyo Design by Zaha Hadid Architects

The organisers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games are refusing to pay a British architect for her designs for its main stadium unless she gives up the copyright and signs what amounts to a gagging order, it has been claimed.

Zaha Hadid Architects, which won the original contract to design a national stadium in the Japanese capital, has reacted angrily to the attempt by the Japan Sports Council to effectively seize ownership of the copyrighted designs, reports The Telegraph, London, UK.

The dispute between Zaha Hadid Architects and the organizers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics is one of the most acrimonious conflicts in architectural profession for years (London’s Garden Bridge is another!).

According to The Telegraph, the Japan Sports Council (JSC) is refusing to pay the British architect and her firm for the work they completed after initially winning the competition to design a new Olympic stadium.

Documents sent to ZHA now demand the firm acquiesce ownership over their copyrighted design as well as sign what sources say amounts to a “gag order.”

The JSC is “allowed to use any product of work … regardless of its copyright.”

The new documents stipulates: “[ZHA] will not do or permit others (includes Dame Zaha Hadid) to obstruct the project … or other related projects … and will not do anything which is derogatory or detrimental to the goodwill and reputation of [the JSC] and/or the Project.”

In a written reply to the JSC, ZHA states, “It may be convenient for those who have benefitted from our humiliation to want us to be quiet, but until the matter is publicly addressed, we cannot support a process and project which damaged us so wrongfully.”

Website: Controversy Over New Olympic Stadium in Tokyo Design by Zaha Hadid Architects – article in The Telegraph

15 + 22 Dec 2015

New National Stadium Tokyo Winning Design

Winning Design Proposals for New Olympic Stadium in Tokyo

Architect Kengo Kuma has been selected for Tokyo’s new Olympic stadium

Design B by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma & Associates:

After scrapping the first design in July, the government picked a less-costly and greenery-rich plan by architect Kengo Kuma for the new National Stadium that will serve as the centerpiece of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Nicknamed the ‘hamburger’:

The winning proposal, formerly known as design A, was submitted by a joint venture comprised of an architect, construction firm Taisei Corp. and construction support firm Azusa Sekkei Co.

Statement by Zaha Hadid on New Olympic Stadium in Tokyo Design

Bowl design by ZHA:

22 Dec – “We were honoured to be selected to design a stadium that would enable Japan to welcome the world for the 2019 Rugby World Cup and bring the 2020 Olympic Games to Tokyo, before becoming a new home for Japanese sport for many future generations.”

“Sadly the Japanese authorities, with the support of some of those from our own profession in Japan, have colluded to close the doors on the project to the world.”

“This shocking treatment of an international design and engineering team, as well as the respected Japanese design companies with whom we worked, was not about design or budget. In fact much of our two years of detailed design work and the cost savings we recommended have been validated by the remarkable similarities of our original detailed stadium layout and our seating bowl configuration with those of the design announced today.”

“Work would already be underway building the stadium if the original design team had simply been able to develop this original design, avoiding the increased costs of an 18 month delay and risk that it may not be ready in time for the 2020 Games.”

Zaha Hadid

Tokyo Olympic Stadium Architect Denies Plagiarising Zaha Hadid – 16 Jan 2016

Previously on e-architect:

New National Stadium Tokyo Building Designs

Design Proposals for New Olympic Stadium in Tokyo

Japanese architects Kengo Kuma and Toyo Ito have unveiled rival proposals to build the 2020 Tokyo Olympic stadium, replacing Zaha Hadid’s competition-winning design.

The Japan Sport Council (JSC) has revealed images of the two designs competing for the Tokyo National Stadium contract, which are by Japanese architects Kuma and Ito.

Design A by architect Toyo Ito:

Design B by architect Kengo Kuma & Associates:

Design A by architect Toyo Ito is estimated to cost ¥153 billion.

Design B by architect Kengo Kuma is estimated to cost ¥153.7 billion.

ZHA had worked on the project for two years. The fact that both Kuma and Ito had joined the petition to scrap Zaha’s design leaves a slightly bad impression. The design by Zaha Hadid Architects was costed around ¥265 billion.

source: New National Stadium Tokyo Designs by Kengo Kuma and by Toyo Ito

The winner is due to be announced at the end of 2015.

Designers behind both proposals have stated that they would be able to complete them by the end of November 2019 – over a month before the January 2020 deadline requested by the International Olympic Committee, reports the Daily Telegraph.

The new stadium will not be ready to host the 2019 Rugby World Cup as initially planned, but the new project will remain the centrepiece for the 2020 Olympic Games.

Previously on e-architect:

New Tokyo National Stadium – summary below

Announcement from Nikken Sekkei on the New National Stadium design & build competition

Nikken Sekkei LTD: Nikken Sekkei has proceeded with its preparations to team up with Zaha Hadid Architects for developing a proposal for the New National Stadium design & build competition.

This architecture competition requires capabilities in planning and design, construction and construction supervision, and requires design firms to form a consortium of firms covering all these capabilities.

New National Stadium in Tokyo video presentation from Zaha Hadid Architects on Vimeo

Zaha Hadid Architects have not been able to secure a construction company in its consortium and therefore announce that they are unable to enter the competition.”

Zaha Hadid Architects: “It is disappointing that the two years of work and investment in the existing design for a new National Stadium for Japan cannot be further developed to meet the new brief through the new design competition.