The extension of the existing building by Jean-Jacques Tchumi has been awarded a regional distinction of these esteemed awards dedicated to exceptional timber construction. Many thanks to localarchitecture, Thinka and Ateliers Casaï!
The new IOC headquarters features a building emerging from a base plate blending into the surrounding landscape. A central, large circular opening hosts a monumental staircase. This emblematic staircase constitutes the actual core of the building, a light-flooded space simultaneously used as gathering and circulation areas.
Its circular shape evokes the five Olympic rings: five discs, one per level, arranged in a complex and dynamical manner spiral up through the building from the basement to the roof. The structure of this circular area consists of a radial array of steel beams connecting two steel-concrete composite rings.