Magma: Olympic shooting range

Featuring a series of coloured openings, the temporary shooting venue for the 2012 Olympics was created to be immediately dismantled after the Games.

German architects Magma have recently completed the temporary shooting venue for the 2012 London Olympics, located at the Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich. This is one of the last remaining new arenas to be built for the Games and will stage Shooting, Paralympic Shooting and Paralympic Archery across three indoor ranges and three open air ranges. All three indoor ranges (a 25-metre, a combined 50/10-metre and a finals range) were completed using around 1,200 tonnes of steel and clad in plywood, while open air ranges will be at the southeast London site. Spectator seating enclosures for the 25-metre and combined ranges are also in place.

The enclosures, which are rented and can be reused after the Games, are clad in around 18,000 square metres of phthalate-free PVC membrane with coloured openings that help break-up the white façades, create structural tension in the membrane, and provide natural ventilation and light. The foundations for the venue were created by driving reclaimed gas pipelines into the ground. A steel frame connects the piles together to prevent the use of concrete that can cause subsidence and damage to the earth when the venue is demounted. Three outdoor ranges will host the Olympic Shotgun competitions and will then be transformed to stage Paralympic Archery competitions afterwards.
Magma Architecture, <em>Olympic shooting range</em>, London
Magma Architecture, Olympic shooting range, London
The completed venue will be handed over to the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) for overlay works, which includes installing the seating across the ranges and constructing back-of-house facilities. Immediately after the Games, the venue will be dismantled as quickly as possible and the site returned to its original condition, after which it will be handed back to the Ministry of Defence, as the landowner. London 2012 is working with the Government and other partners to identify opportunities where elements of the venue and sports equipment could be reused after the Games.
Magma Architecture, <em>Olympic shooting range</em>, London
Magma Architecture, Olympic shooting range, London
Magma Architecture, <em>Olympic shooting range</em>, London
Magma Architecture, Olympic shooting range, London
Magma Architecture, <em>Olympic shooting range</em>, London
Magma Architecture, Olympic shooting range, London
Magma Architecture, <em>Olympic shooting range</em>, London
Magma Architecture, Olympic shooting range, London
Magma Architecture, <em>Olympic shooting range</em>, London
Magma Architecture, Olympic shooting range, London

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