The saga of a National Stadium

The day the old National Stadium in central Tokyo played out its final encounter in May 2014 as Japan put Hong Kong to the wall with a 49-8 victory over Hong Kong's Rugby Union team, who were possibly unaware of their contribution to a little piece of history. The stadium was then demolished to a fighter jet fly past and, with the plans for the new creation also demolished, now resembles a large pile of rubble in the eastern corner of Shinjuku.

The initial Zaha Hadid design was cast adrift after providing a boost to the Olympic bid based officially upon the question of "cost". As the architect herself pointed out "that's what happens when you say to the contractor you've got the job, now how much will it cost?". The two new finalist, which came in at a cost a fraction of a percent in difference from each other and remarkably close to the government specified limit of approximately $1.3bn, have now been whittled down to one.

And pancakes it is. Japan has great experience in wooden structures so there is little question it can be delivered in style. The timing of November 2019 is probably a little surprising for the Rugby World Cup, first left standing at the alter when the original design was abandoned only to find the new stadium is destined to be complete a mere three weeks after the Rugby World Cup final. A national stadium is important, reflecting a belief in the value that sport can bring to a country, its youth and its populace in general. And it's not just for the Olympics; it will be there for next fifty years. 

The 2020 Olympics, a commitment for the future

I have no doubt that the new National Stadium in the centre of Tokyo will be up and ready in time for the 2020 Olympics. However it actually needs to be ready for the 2019 Rugby World Cup which seems to be slipping by in everyone's memories at the moment. The key question of course exactly which stadium it will be; the current spectacular, though currently controversial design, or a local re-hash in a measured capitulation to the architectural profession here. 

The cost of the project is now spiralling however with national debt approaching 250% of GDP it's hard to argue that an extra couple of billion dollars are going to make much of a difference. And diverting this cash to rebuilding Tohoku is also a non-issue as the money for that is already sitting in bank accounts and simply not being spent fast enough. But a new stadium is a necessity and it should be something that makes a statement for the next sixty years.

During World Cup in 2002 it was a sad indictment that not a single game was played in the capital city of the host nation, the final being played in Yokohama. The old stadium was showing it's age, too small, uncovered and generally in need of knocking down. The issue here though is that the arguments against the choice of stadium came to the surface only after the Olympics had been awarded and the stadium itself was a central element of the proposal. Japan made a commitment to the world. Build Zaha Hadid's design.

    

Fighter Jets over Tokyo

The Japanese National Stadium, the Kokuritsu Kasumigaoka Rikujo Kyogijo, doesn't really have the iconic ring of "Wembley", "Stade de France" or "The Rose Bowl". And it's finally been decided that it's time to go. Opened in 1958 it hosted the Asian Games that year followed by the Olympics in 1964. And after that it's been a little quiet. In 2002 when the World Cup was held in Japan, not a single game was held in the capital city. The stadium being deemed simply not up to the job.

So a week ago it held its last game; a Japan vs Hong Kong Rugby match. Japan took the game 49 - 8 and thirty thousand people appeared to have turned up as empty seats. Last week though was the closing ceremony. A permanent finale pending demolition next year followed by the construction of the awesome new Zaha Hadid designed creation in time for the Rugby World Cup in 2019 and Olympics in 2020.

The highlight of the ceremony was an honour salute from six jets from the Japanese Air Force. The sight was impressive and the flight path took the planes directly over Shibuya where I live. It wasn't that well publicised though so many missed a rare sight of fighter jets over Tokyo. It's been a while as it were. And many others thought China had arrived.