the world village of women’s sports, malmo, sweden by BIG architects

BIG in collaboration with akt, tyréns and transsolar were awarded first place in a design competition in malmo, sweden for the first of its kind sports facility.   the world village of women sports seeks to create a natural gathering place for the research, education and training in all areas connected to the development of women’s sports. located in the centre of malmo, the 100.000 m2 facility will create a regional landmark and new attraction for the area.   composed as a village rather than a sports complex the wvows combines individual buildings with a variety of uses with open spaces and public gardens. the sloping roofscapes and alternating building volumes provide the complex with the varying identity of a small village thus reducing its scale to the adjacent neighborhood. the interior streets animated through public functions resemble a medieval downtown, supporting all aspects of human life – generous living, work and intensive play. the central hall is large enough to accommodate professional football matches as well as concerts, conferences, exhibitions and flea markets. rather than being an introverted sports arena shut off from the surrounding city – it appears like an open and welcoming public space, visible from all of the surrounding streets – generously offering its interior life to the passers-by. the pedestrian network around the main sports hall plugs into the surrounding street networks as well as the interior galleries of kronprinsen, turning it into a complete ecosystem of urban life.

‘the WVOWS fuses high levels of ambition within public space and private accommodation, living and working, health and recreation, sport and culture. like a village rather than sports complex it merges the modern utopianism of the neighboring kronprinsen with the intimate scale and specificity of the nearby historical city center of malmo.’ bjarke ingels, partner-in-charge, BIG

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

BIG wins competition for the world village of women sports, malmo

world village of women sports credit list: project: wvows type: invited competition            client: h-hagen fastighets ab collaborators: akt, tyréns, transsolar size: 100.000 m2 location: malmo, sweden status: 1st prize   partner-in-charge: bjarke ingels project leader: nanna gyldholm moller team: gabrielle nadeau, daniel sundlin, jonas barre, nicklas antoni rasch, jin kyung park, fan zhang, steve huang, flavien menu, ken aoki