The 6,000 seat Velodrome will host the Olympic and Paralympic Track Cycling events in 2012. After the Games, the legacy Velodrome will be used by elite athletes and the local community and will include a café, bike hire and cycle workshop facilities.

With the distinct double-curved roof of the Velodrome covered and the building watertight, work is now underway to install the timber cycling track. The ODA is aiming to create the world’s fastest cycling track by tailoring the track geometry and setting the temperature and environmental conditions within the venue to create record-breaking conditions. The venue has also been being designed with seating all the way round the track to create the best possible crowd atmosphere during events.

A team of 26 specialist carpenters have now installed 356 vertical timber support trusses that will support the track. With the support trusses now in place, 56km of surface timber will be laid to form the track surface.

The track surface will be built from a sustainably-sourced Siberian pine, specially selected because the trees are known for being straight and tall making them suitable for the lengths of timber required to shape the track. The extreme Siberian climate also means the timber is very stable and will not shrink or contract in the environmental conditions of the Velodrome.

A new webcam showing the progress being made on the Velodrome track is now available on the London 2012 website at http://www.london2012.com/webcams/velodrome-internal.php. New images of work on the Velodrome track can be downloaded from http://mm.gettyimages.com/mm/nicePath/locog?nav=pr141229966.

ODA Chief Executive David Higgins said: 'The start of work on the Velodrome track is a significant milestone and takes us another step closer to this becoming the first Olympic Park venue to be completed early next year.

'Seeing the track beginning to take shape gives us a first look at where we hope world records will be broken in 2012 and where a new generation of cyclists will be able to take to their bikes for many years to come.'

Seb Coe, Chair of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games said: 'It is exciting to see the progress on the Velodrome track. Cycling is a huge Olympic and Paralympic sport and this world-class venue will be a fantastic setting for spectators - hopefully inspiring many of them to try out the sport long after the Games have finished.'

Hugh Robertson, Minister for Sport and the Olympics, said: 'The Velodrome is one venue where we expect a great medal haul from British athletes on what will be an exceptionally fast track. Post the Games, the venue will be a first-rate facility for elite athletes and community users alike that will help us develop Britain’s cycling stars of the future.'

Shaun Dawson, Chief Executive of Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, which will own and manage the Velodrome in legacy, said: 'It’s incredibly exciting to witness the transformation of the Velodrome into one of the stars of Olympic Park.

'As the owners and managers of the VeloPark in legacy we’ll make sure this venue delivers a world-class programme, welcoming cyclists of all levels and disciplines to train, race or just simply cycle for fun. It will be an integral part of the chain of sporting excellence being created in the 10,000 acre Lee Valley Regional Park.'

Construction work started on the Velodrome in March 2009 and the venue is on track to be completed early next year, making it the first Olympic Park venue to be completed. After the Games, a road cycle circuit and mountain bike course will be added to the Velodrome and BMX circuit to create a legacy VeloPark that will combine cycling facilities across all disciplines in one cycling ‘hub’.

The legacy VeloPark will be owned and managed by Lee Valley Regional Park Authority. The construction of the VeloPark facilities includes funding from Lee Valley Regional Park Authority (LVRPA), Sport England, Transport for London (TfL), and the London Marathon Charitable Trust (LMCT).

Velodrome fact file:

Velodrome facilities:

Velodrome design:

Construction:

Sustainability elements:

• 250m UCI (International Cycling Union) approved indoor track and 100m warm-up circuit
• 6,000 seats and 360 degree public poncourse in legacy for viewing all cycling activities
• Legacy café, changing rooms, cycle workshop, and storage for over 300 bikes
• Legacy bike hire outlet for families to hire bikes to use the new cycling facilities
• Venue will be linked into cycle routes across London, linking the new venue with the whole of the capital

• Distinct Velodrome roof designed to reflect the geometry of the cycling track
• The 6,000 seats are split into a lower and upper tier, allowing a 360 degrees concourse level in between with a continuous ribbon of full height windows
• The 360-degree glazed concourse level in legacy will offer spectators inside the Velodrome views out onto the rest of the Olympic Park and across the London skyline, while allowing people outside of the Velodrome views into the venue and down onto the cycling track

• Some 48,000 cubic metres of material was excavated to create the bowl for the Velodrome, enough to fill 19 50m swimming pools
• More than 900 piles were driven up to 26m beneath the ground to complete the foundations of the venue
• More than 2,500 sections of steelwork were installed to complete the steel structure of the Velodrome
• The cable-net roof is 12,000sq m in size and uses 16km of cabling
• A team of 26 specialist carpenters have installed 356 vertical timber support trusses that will support the track
• 56km of surface timber will be laid to form the track surface. The track surface will be built from a sustainably-sourced Siberian pine

• The building has been designed to be lightweight and efficient to reflect the efficient design of a bicycle
• The use of abundant daylight through strategically positioned rooflights reduces need for artificial lighting and allows natural ventilation
• Water saving fittings and collection of rainwater for reuse in building are built into design to help reduce water consumption
• Compact design minimises energy consumed to heat the main arena
• Lightweight cable-net roof structure weighs 30kg/m2 compared to 65kg/m2 for the Beijing Velodrome, helping create a highly efficient building

Notes to editors:

1.      The latest images of the Velodrome can be downloaded from http://mm.gettyimages.com/mm/nicePath/locog?nav=pr141229966

2.      The Velodrome webcam can be viewed at http://www.london2012.com/webcams/velodrome-internal.php.

3.      The Velodrome is being constructed by ISG who were also responsible for replacing the track at the Manchester Velodrome where the British team securing nine gold medals at the World Cycling Championships in 2008

4.      The design team for the VeloPark is made up of Hopkins Architects, Expedition Engineering, BDSP and Grant Associates, who were appointed in 2007 following a design competition judged by leading names from the world of architecture and design as well as Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy.

5.      The Lee Valley Park Regional Authority will own, manage and fund the London 2012 White Water Canoe Centre just north of the M25, the VeloPark, and Tennis Centre and Hockey Centre on the Olympic Park in legacy, ensuring all four are well used by a variety of target groups from beginners to elite athletes with extensive community use, outreach and sports development programmes. They will join the other regional sports venues the Authority owns including the award winning Lee Valley Athletics Centre to create a chain of sporting excellence along the 26 mile long Lee Valley Regional Park. The Park attracts more that four million visitors a year to its 10,000 acres of sport and leisure activities, heritage sites, gardens, nature reserves and riverside trails.

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For further information please contact the Olympic Delivery Authority Press Office on +44 (0)20 3 2012 700.

The construction of the venues and infrastructure of the London 2012 Games is funded by the National Lottery through the Olympic Lottery Distributor, The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Mayor of London and the London Development Agency.

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