BBC SPORT | Olympics & Olympic sport | Beijing venues (original) (raw)

Situated next to the National Stadium, the National Aquatics Centre has earned itself the moniker 'Water Cube' thanks to its truly remarkable structure.

Designed by Australian architects PTW, the �54m venue was funded by Chinese investors.

The building's steel structure is based on a modified theory created by physicists Denis Weaire and Robert Phelan that uses tetrakaidecahedra-shaped (14-sided) cells to maximise space.

The venue, which will cater for 17,000 spectators, will trap up to 90% of the solar energy to heat the pools.

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