The 12,000-seat gym is named for its location in the Ariake area of Koto Municipality, one of the constituent parts of Tokyo. The structure is located on the bank of the canal, practically on the water of Tokyo Bay. A volleyball arena and tennis courts have been erected nearby, also prepared for the 2020 Olympics postponed due to the pandemic.
In the project, the maximum role was given to wood, which corresponds to the general policy of these Games (there should be a lot of wood in sports facilities, and “sustainability” is put at the forefront). But it is also a reminder of the history of the place: in the past, there was a pool for storing a forest.
Although the overall frame of the building is steel, almost everything else is made of wood: facades, stands, ceilings. This solution, especially in relation to the roof, made it possible to reduce the mass of the building, which is important in the conditions of difficult coastal soils.
The architects relied on the traditions of Japanese wooden architecture, but at the same time they experimented with the supporting structure of the roof, choosing, among other things, monolithic beams from glued laminated timber instead of smaller parts. Such a solution is more fireproof and, in the literal sense, stable.
A peculiarity of the layout is the semi-open lobby areas that are taken out of the building and distribute the streams of spectators. This made it possible to make the center more attractive and open, in contrast to the typical monolithic structures. The relatively low height of the structure - 30 m - is associated with the surrounding of residential buildings.
