Olympic swim centre roof in place

The roof of the 2012 Olympic Aquatics Centre, a landmark 2,800-tonne wave-shaped structure, has been set into place in east London.

Work to position the steel frame on the building in Stratford began in March.

The roof, designed to stretch, twist and contract according to the weather, will now be covered in aluminium.

The 17,500-seat venue, designed by Zaha Hadid but criticised for its rising costs, has been described as the "Gateway into the Games".

Column-free roof

The venue will house two 50m swimming pools, a 25m diving pool and a tower.

Despite a reduction in size the cost of the centre is now about £300m, four times the £75m quoted in London's winning bid.

The column-free roof is 160m long and up to 90m wide.

It is connected to steel trusses and rests on two concrete supports at the northern end and a 28m-long and 5m-wide supporting wall at its southern end.

After the Games the capacity of the stadium will be reduced to 2,500. The centre is located at the southern end of the 2012 site.

An Olympic Delivery Authority spokesman said: "We have completed one of the most complex engineering challenges on the Olympic Park."

The centre will host swimming, diving, synchronised swimming, the water polo finals and the swimming discipline of the modern pentathlon.

Organisers said the construction of Games facilities continues to be on schedule and on budget.

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