Olympic 2008 – Beijing, China

BEIJING, Aug. 8, 2008: The 29th summer Olympic Games opened in Beijing on Friday night. The following are some facts and figures about the opening ceremony.

THE VENUE

• The opening was held in the National Stadium, also known as the Bird’s Nest, in the Olympic Green in northern Beijing.
• The stadium was jointly designed by Herzog & de Meuron Design Office, and China Architecture Design & Research Group and ARUP.
• Its construction began on Dec. 24, 2003, and completed on June 30, 2008. Altogether 45,000 tonnes of steel was used to build its framework.
• The stadium’s seating capacity is 91,000, including 11,000 temporary seats. The floor space is 258,000 square meters.

GROUND FACILITIES

• A major elevating platform at the center is 20 meters in diameter, weighing about 400 tonnes, and can reach 11.4 meters high at a speed of zero to 12 meters per minute.
• Two moving lids on the stage serve as a roof.
• A 36 by 22 meters LED screen is installed on the plates.
• On the south and north sides are 30 complementary platforms, with each 3-meter-wide and 3-meter-long.
• When the two lids move toward the center, the complementary platforms will rise and make up the stage.
• Two sets of 22-meter-long LED scroll painting were installed, with a diameter of 22 meters.
• With LED images shown on it, the scroll painting can stretch 147 meters long.

ABOVE-STAGE FACILITIES

• Ten steel ropes are hung above the stage, weighing 40 tonnes in all and with a total length of 55 kilometers.
• Among the 31 wire devices, 16 sets can carry a load of 300 kilograms each, with a load of 100 kilograms for each of the other 15. All can move at 3 meters per second and can function at the same time.
• One hundred jumping facilities with a load capacity of 80 kilograms each are set under the rim of the roof edge, which can move at 3 meters per second and be operated simultaneously.

LED SCREEN ON THE GROUND

• A 147 by 22 meters LED screen is laid at the center. Approximately 44,000 colorful LED beads are embedded with a distance of 600 millimeters between each two.

FIREWORKS CELEBRATION

• 287 points on the top of National Stadium
• 27 positions in the central area of National Stadium
• 12 positions in the Olympic Green
• 29 positions on the axis of the city
• 4 places in other urban areas

Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-08/08/content_9052487.htm