Dong’an Lake Sports Park Stadium – stadium description

How did the Dong'an Lake Sports Park come about?

On 1 March 1, 2019, Chengdu was officially announced as the host of the 31st summer Universiade (the official name valid from this edition is the World University Games), which was to be held in August 2021. Unofficially, the fact that Chengdu was hosting the event was already known at the end of 2018, so preparations had already started then.

One of the major investments made in connection with the Universiade was the construction of the new Dong'an Lake Sports Park, whose main stadium was to host the opening ceremony of the competition. Construction of the complex had already begun in October 2018, while construction of the stadium itself started in May 2019.

How did the construction of Dong'an Lake Sports Park proceed?

Due to the tight schedule, the contractor imposed a high pace of work, and work was carried out 24 hours a day. The new facilities were built on time, although in April 2021 the Universiade, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was postponed until the following year (in May 2022 the competition was moved another year to replace the 2023 Universiade, the organisation of which, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, was stripped from Yekaterinburg). Despite the event taking place in 2023, the competition in Chengdu retained the year 2021 in its name.

Although the sports hall of the Dong'an Lake Sports Park complex had already opened, the inauguration of the new stadium was not until the opening ceremony of the Universiade, which took place on July 28, 2023.

What does the Dong'an Lake Sports Park Stadium look like?

The new stadium was built in the eastern suburbs of Chengdu, in Longquanyi District, about 20 km from the city centre. The stadium is the main component of the Dong'an Lake Sports Park complex.

The stadium was built on a circular plan and is shaped to resemble a flying saucer. The building is covered with silver metal slats, which give the façade a transparent appearance, although from a distance it appears to have a compact, closed structure. Wide, panoramic viewing platforms are part of the façade. At night, it is possible to create spectacular multimedia illuminations on the roof and façade.

Inside the venue, a single-level ring of stands stretches across the arena. Their upper edge undulates in a sinusoidal pattern, reaching the highest height along the pitch. The stands are equipped with folding plastic seats in white and blue. The central sections of the stands along the pitch have separate VIP areas. Video screens have been installed on the arches and floodlights have been mounted on the edge of the roof. The capacity of the stadium is 40,000 spectators.

A roof was created over the auditorium, which is tiled on top. The roof is decorated with an extraordinary ornament, featuring the motif of the 'Golden Sun Bird'. 'Golden Sun Bird' is an ancient artefact found in 2001 in Chengdu. It consists of a gold platter with a distinctive pattern depicting four birds circling the sun. The pattern became known as the essence of Shu culture and was adopted as Chengdu's logo in 2011.

By incorporating the distinctive design into the stadium, the venue combines traditional features typical of the region with modern architecture.

What are the characteristics of the Dong'an Lake Sports Park complex?

In addition to the stadium, the important elements of the complex are the three closely spaced, square-shaped buildings, which are also covered by a facade of horizontal metal slats. One of the buildings houses an arena with a capacity of 18,000 spectators, another houses a training hall and the third is a swimming complex. Additional pitches, green areas, paths, access roads and car parks are part of the entire complex.

A park with an artificial lake was created next to the stadium. A raised platform surrounds the stadium, from which wide promenades extend in four directions. The boulevard heading south ends at the lake, where a tall torch was erected to burn during the Universiade.

The design of the Dong'an Lake Sports Park was a collaboration between the China Southwest Architectural Design and Research Institute and German studio gmp Architekten, which designed the three rectangular buildings. The main contractor for the facilities was China Construction Eighth Engineering Bureau. The construction cost of the entire complex was 5.025 billion yuan.

What is the role of the Dong'an Lake Sports Park?

The stadium, like the other venues in the complex, is designed to host world-class sports competitions and cultural events. During the 2023 Universiade, the stadium hosted the opening ceremony of the event, although no sports competitions were held there (the other venues of the complex hosted swimming competitions and artistic gymnastics competitions instead). After the Universiade, a football pitch with an athletics track will be built at the stadium.