First stone laid for future Olympic headquarters
The first stone of the future new headquarters of the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne was laid on Tuesday, along with five time capsules to be opened in 100 years.
The 200-million-franc Olympic Unity House, a futuristic building designed by Danish architects 3XN, is set to open in 2020 when it will bring together 600 employees now working in different sites for the organization responsible for the Olympic Games.
During a ceremony with local officials, IOC President Thomas Bach disclosed the contents of the time capsules, each coloured differently to match the five Olympic rings.
Bach noted that the IOC had celebrated throughout this year the 100th anniversary of its existence in the capital of the canton of Vaud.
“Today we are looking to the future of the Olympic movement here in Lausanne,” he said in a statement.
“What better symbol of our attachment to the Olympic capital than the construction of a new building?”
The three-storey structure with curving glass and steel walls set in a park next to the chateau of Vidy was selected from 118 entries in a competition launched by the IOC more than two years ago.
The time capsules include key items from the history of the Olympic movement including:
- Manuscripts from Baron Pierre de Couvertin, founder of the modern-day Olympics
- Minutes from the Lausanne city council meeting of April 10th 1915 that formally recorded the establishment of the IOC in Lausanne
- The document in which the city granted the IOC a lease until 2115
- Photos of the model of the new Olympic House
- A handwritten speech by Bach outlining his vision for the future of the Olympic movement
- Messages from Lausanne-area children describing how they imagined the Olympic Games would look like in 2015.
View of planned new headquarters building next to Vidy chateau. Photo: 3XN
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The 200-million-franc Olympic Unity House, a futuristic building designed by Danish architects 3XN, is set to open in 2020 when it will bring together 600 employees now working in different sites for the organization responsible for the Olympic Games.
During a ceremony with local officials, IOC President Thomas Bach disclosed the contents of the time capsules, each coloured differently to match the five Olympic rings.
Bach noted that the IOC had celebrated throughout this year the 100th anniversary of its existence in the capital of the canton of Vaud.
“Today we are looking to the future of the Olympic movement here in Lausanne,” he said in a statement.
“What better symbol of our attachment to the Olympic capital than the construction of a new building?”
The three-storey structure with curving glass and steel walls set in a park next to the chateau of Vidy was selected from 118 entries in a competition launched by the IOC more than two years ago.
The time capsules include key items from the history of the Olympic movement including:
- Manuscripts from Baron Pierre de Couvertin, founder of the modern-day Olympics
- Minutes from the Lausanne city council meeting of April 10th 1915 that formally recorded the establishment of the IOC in Lausanne
- The document in which the city granted the IOC a lease until 2115
- Photos of the model of the new Olympic House
- A handwritten speech by Bach outlining his vision for the future of the Olympic movement
- Messages from Lausanne-area children describing how they imagined the Olympic Games would look like in 2015.
View of planned new headquarters building next to Vidy chateau. Photo: 3XN
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