html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"Zaha Hadid Architects has provided an update about its new sports center in Nansha, China.The Greater Bay Area Sports Centre, currently in the last phases of interior finishing and landscaping, is set to be completed by June in anticipation of the China National Games in November 2025.The Greater Bay Area Sports Centre, located within a 70-hectare park that offers Nanshas residents various landscaped areas along the river for sports and leisure activities, features a stadium with a capacity of 60,000 seats, a basketball arena and venue for other indoor events that accommodates 20,000 spectators, and an aquatics centre with a diving well and a 50-metre swimming pool designed for training and competitions that can hold 4,000 people.In addition to athletes accommodation, the sports centre offers a variety of additional amenities such as outdoor training pitches and running tracks.These will aid local government initiatives aimed at promoting sports participation among schoolchildren, thereby benefiting the health of the regions youth."The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area is the worlds largest conurbation with its population anticipated to reach 100 million by 2030," said Zaha Hadid Architects."Situated at the southern end of Guangzhous Nansha District on the western bank of the historic Pearl River, the Greater Bay Area Sports Centre will serve as an anchor to the new civic, business and residential district at the heart of the Greater Bay Area.""Offering its local community sports facilities of the highest standards, the centre has also been designed to host a diverse programme of major national and international sporting events, as well as cultural performances, that can be easily accessed by all residents of the Greater Bay Area via Line 18 of the Guangzhou Metro and the new Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge," the firm added.The centre will not only offer outstanding facilities for Nanshas local schools and sports clubs but also further Chinas current sports development initiatives at both regional and national scales.The centre is designed to provide competitive athletes, including those in all track and field events, with essential infrastructure. Its design takes advantage of Nanshas warm winters to create optimal outdoor training facilities and conditions that can help cultivate future legacies.This parkland, covering 70 hectares and situated along the river, is designed to be a key part of the district's flood control strategy. It will feature wetlands that handle surplus water during extreme changes in sea level, all within Guangdongs subtropical monsoon climate.The architecture of the centre, with its fluid forms, reflects the tapering geometries seen in the hulls of traditional sailing ships from the region, which were designed during the Song Dynasty around a millennium ago. These historic vessels established the Pearl River as the leading hub of global trade in China.The sports centre incorporates environmental concepts from the local Lingnan vernacular architecture, featuring ample sheltered areas that are cooled by effective natural ventilation methods during the humid subtropical summer months.The roof of the stadium is designed as a layered system that protects the 60,000 spectators from rain and direct sunlight while allowing rising warm air to vent naturally outside the building's envelope.The stadium is surrounded by this unique layered roof, which imitates the pleated silk designs of traditional Chinese fans.The sports centre, located on the banks of the Pearl River, features architecture that represents the gateway to Guangzhou and the northern districts of the Greater Bay Area. It is situated next to the main northward route leading to the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge, which links the key urban centres of the Greater Bay Area.Each building in the centre is shaped by a network of vertical louvres. The buildings curvilinear forms are designed to promote natural cooling from the prevailing summer winds blowing inland from the South China Sea, and are informed by advanced digital 3D modelling to optimise shading in their civic spaces.The stadium can accommodate 60,000 spectators for various sports events, and its seating bowl can be modified to create ideal spectator conditions tailored to each event. This ensures the best views of the athletes and the most thrilling atmosphere, while also allowing for maximum versatility in its use across the year.Cultural performances can also be staged in the stadium, with the audience oriented towards a stage featuring a distinctive backdrop. The stadiums design features a grand arch that provides panoramic views of the river during sports and cultural events, creating a direct link between all spectators and the riverside environment of the stadium.Following the 2023 international design competition, Zaha Hadid Architects, in collaboration with the Guangdong Architectural Design & Research Institute, designed the centre on commission from the Nansha District Bureau of Culture & Sports.On 31 August 2023, work commenced on the Greater Bay Area Sports Centre. The primary frameworks of the stadium and arena reached their maximum height in February 2024.In February 2025, the roofing and curtain walls of the arena and aquatics centre were installed, marking the completion of this phase of the project. Furthermore, the project entered its final stages progressing up to its handover in June 2025.Site planSite planAquatic Centre, First Floor PlanAquatic Centre, SectionSports Center, Arena, First Floor PlanSports Center, Arena, SectionsStadium, First Floor Plan, First Basement Floor PlanStadium, SectionsZaha Hadid Architects unveiled design for a new masterplan, featuring a pair of fluid towers in eastern Naples, Italy. In addition, the construction work began on ZHA's Centre of Mediterranean Culture in Reggio Calabria, Italy. Moreover, the firm created material-rich showroom interiors for Marisfrolg Fashion Group in Shenzhen, China.Project factsArchitect: Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA)Design:Patrik SchumacherZHA Project Directors:Lei Zheng, Nils FischerZHA Project Associates:Jinqi Huang, Vishu Bhooshan, Jakub KlaskaZHA Project Architect:Hung-da ChienZHA Project Team: Teodor Andonov, Shajay Bhooshan, Taizhong Chen, Heba Eiz,Vegard Elseth, Matthew Gabe, Sonia Magdziarz, Ling Mao, Keerti Manney, Xin Swift, Ke Yang, Chris Whiteside, Svenja Siever, Tul SrisompunZHA Competition Team:Luca Bacilieri, Niran Buyukkoz, Junfei Chen, Nils Fischer, Matthew Gabe, Jakub Klask , Han Hsun Hsieh, Jingwen Yang, Paul Joseph, Shuaiwei Li, Juan Liu, Sonia Magdziarz, Yuling Ma, Satoshi Ohashi, Michael On, Xin Swift, Ceren Tekin, Ke Yang, Bo Zhang, Chu Zhou, Lei Zheng.Competition Sports Consultant:Clive John LewisCompetition Consortium Member: Guangzhou Architectural Design & Research Institute Co., Ltd.ConsultantsExecutive Architect:Guangzhou Architectural Design & Research Institute (GDAD), China Southwest Architectural Design and Research Institute (CSWADI)Structural Engineers:GDAD, CSWADIGeneral Contractor:China Construction Eighth Engineering Division & China Construction Third Engineering DivisionFaade Engineering: RFR(Rice Francis Ritchie sarl) Engineers, GDAD, CSWADIM&E Engineering:GDAD, CSWADILandscape Consultant:AECOMLighting Design:Lichtvision Design & Tsinghua Urban Planning and Design Institute (THUPDI)Site Supervision: Guangzhou Runhe Consulting Co., Ltd., Guangzhou Pearl River Supervision and Consulting Group, Guangzhou Construction Engineering Supervision Co.All images CRLand.All drawings Zaha Hadid Architects.> via Zaha Hadid Architects