Trees on the pitch

Tossols Basil Athletics Stadium

Tossols Basil

The area called Tossols Basil, which is desi­gnated for leisure acti­vi­ties, is located at the edge of both a city and a natural park along a river. When contem­pla­ting adding sports faci­li­ties here, the archi­tects faced a dilemma of either clea­ring large amounts of slow-growing oak trees or succum­bing to envi­ron­men­ta­lists who wanted no change at all.

The solu­tion was to site the athletic track in a forest clea­ring, previously used for culti­va­tion. Nature and sports are united and runners appear and disap­pear as they make their way around the track. The project high­lights the beauty of the land­scape and preserves the vege­ta­tion as a filter that changes with the seasons.

The seating for obser­ving the athletes is deve­loped as small terraces or embank­ments between the clea­rings, often using the natural topo­graphy. The slender lighting towers become points of refe­rence in the land­scape.

Natural surroundings

Set in natural surroun­dings, this athle­tics track enables the merits of the exis­ting land­scape to be empha­sized and the track events them­selves to be brought closer to nature.
The track is implanted in two clea­rings in the white oak wood. Conti­guous wood­land at a distance and far-off wood­land are the rela­tions estab­lished between the track and the wood, the seating being deve­loped as small terraces or as embank­ments between the clea­rings.
As well as contai­ning the func­tional faci­li­ties, its equip­ment is inter­re­lated with the walls, embank­ments and ramps that forma­lize the change in height from entrance to track; it is the great gateway directed towards the races, a filter between nature and the urban. A gateway that is an extended roof held up by two volumes, one of which is like a great open window with a glass wall which doesn’t inter­rupt the visual conti­nuity and picks up the reflec­tion of the wood that has deter­mined the entire inter­ven­tion.

Architect

RCR Arqui­tectes Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem, Ramón Vilalta Marià Vayreda, 23 ES — 17800 Olot

Team

M.Tàpies, A.Sáez, M.Bordas, Brufau, Obiol, Moya. G.Rodriguez, P.Rifà

Client

C. Bisbe Guillamet

Building contractor

C. Joan Maragall

Address

Carrer Cadis, 35 17800 Olot Es — Girona, Spanien

Aerial view

Thank you, Google!

Photograph

H.Suzuki, E.Pons, M.Checinski

Author

RCR Arqui­tectos

Site plans

The beauty of steel

After comple­ting the track in 2001, other faci­li­ties have been added; a soccer field and an entrance pavi­lion with chan­ging faci­li­ties, that RCR calls the 2x1 pavi­lion. This struc­ture that acts as a gateway to the area has a thin roof supported by two volumes allo­wing multiple views through.

Once again, RCR employs only one mate­rial – Cor-Ten steel – and the struc­ture settles easily into its natural setting.

Running, nature and Pritzker

Set in natural surroun­dings, this athle­tics track enables the merits of the exis­ting land­scape to be empha­sized and the track events them­selves to be brought closer to nature.

The track is implanted in two clea­rings in the white oak wood. Conti­guous wood­land at a distance and far-off wood­land are the rela­tions estab­lished between the track and the wood, the seating being deve­loped as small terraces or as embank­ments between the clea­rings.

As well as contai­ning the func­tional faci­li­ties, its equip­ment is inter­re­lated with the walls, embank­ments and ramps that forma­lize the change in height from entrance to track; it is the great gateway directed towards the races, a filter between nature and the urban. A gateway that is an extended roof held up by two volumes, one of which is like a great open window with a glass wall which doesn’t inter­rupt the visual conti­nuity and picks up the reflec­tion of the wood that has deter­mined the entire inter­ven­tion.

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