Bergisel sky-jump Stadion | Ottavio Di Blasi

The project’s topic is about interaction between nature and the built environment, the Alpine mountainscape and the mass of a building as big as an indoor arena. The basic idea is covering only part of the stands, so that there’s still a clear view of the ski jump set against the natural backdrop of Alpine mountains. The roof is made of a Teflon membrane, stretched over a compressed steel outside frame. The entire structure rests on the ground solely at certain points around the outside perimeter, to make the roof as light as possible. The roof design, completely open along one side of the stadium, follows the trajectory of ski jumpers from the take-off ramp to the landing area down the valley. The building’s technical/reception facilities are all located below the stands, so that the only visible built element is the light Teflon roof, that just looks as if it was resting on the edge of the stadium bowl. Only the glass press positions stand out on the hill, near the main entrance, generally attracting attention. The bottom of the bowl-shaped vault, which during the winter is covered by snow, can be opened by a “diaphragm” device, so that the Auditorium stage can be raised with hydraulic jacks up into the middle of the outside stands. So, the stage can be installed indoors and then rises up outside, like an outdoor stadium, for its use during the summer. The Auditorium itself is completely buried beneath the bottom part of the bowl-shaped vault, and can be used all year round, with a seating capacity varying between 400 and 12.000.