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Zaha Hadid

The London Aquatic Centre, currently being constructed in the London Olympic Park, is a speciality facility that will host athletics during the 2012 Olympic Games.

The centre has two 50m swimming pools and a 25m diving pool. It will host events such as swimming, diving, synchronised swimming and some of the modern pentathlon. It is being built to accommodate approximately 17,500 people during the Olympic Games.

The aquatic centre was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid. Construction will be supervised by the Olympic Delivery Authority. The centre will be built by Balfour Beatty, the chief contractor, as well as Ove Arup and pool architects S&P.

The centre was originally estimated to cost £75m, however this has risen to £242m due to inflation and VAT.

Plans to let-out the stadium for public use after the Olympic Games have also contributed to the rise in costs. In spite of the increase, the cost of the centre will still be within the construction budget of £6.09bn.