The under-construction Kai Tak Sports Park, which is set to be Hong Kong’s largest sports venue, is 85% complete. Authorities say it will be ready by the end of this year, and is on track to open in 2025. The highlight of the 28-hectare sports park is the 50,000-seat main stadium with a retractable roof, which will be the biggest stadium in the city, a distinction currently held by the 40,000-capacity Hong Kong Stadium.
On Monday, Kai Tak Sports Park officials revealed that the exterior building façade panels of the main stadium are complete, which they say is a “significant milestone” in the venue’s construction. The main stadium is designed with the theme ‘Pearl of the Orient’, and its surface has about 27,000 aluminium panels, each shaped into signature design triangular pieces.
The colours of the façade will shift between mountain blue, metallic purple, metallic silver and other colours, depending on the natural lighting conditions. The exterior of the stadium also has more than 7,000 LED lights to create visual effects, and the panels are self-cleaning to reduce the impact of dust and rainwater on the exterior walls.
Apart from the main stadium, Kai Tak Sports Park will also have an indoor sports centre that can accommodate 10,000 spectators and a public sports ground with 5,000 seats. Once the sports park opens next year, it will be ground zero for prestigious events like the Hong Kong Sevens and the 15th National Games, which is being co-hosted by Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macau. The venue will also house several open public spaces for events and leisure, as well as retail and harbourfront dining spaces.
Header image credits: Kai Tak Sports Park