Contracts have been awarded for the construction of the 5,000-seat Water Polo Arena, one of the last venues to be built on the Olympic Park.

The ground is currently being prepared before work on the substructure begins in March. The temporary venue, containing a 37m-long competition pool and a slightly smaller warm-up pool, will stage the Men’s and Women’s Water Polo.

The Arena, with its distinctive silver wrap and inflatable ribbed roof made from recyclable plastic, will be built by a number of firms from across the UK.

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It will be located at the entrance to the Olympic Park, next to the Aquatics Centre, with which a number of back-of-house facilities will be shared to make the best use of available space.

The contractors and suppliers appointed to deliver the Arena were selected through the Olympic Delivery Authority's (ODA's) existing frameworks that were set up to deliver efficiently a range of temporary and smaller permanent venues.

After the Games, the venue will be taken down, with elements reused elsewhere in the UK, promoting reuse and reduction of materials.

Ian Crockford, ODA Project Sponsor for the Water Polo Arena, said: "The start of work on the Water Polo Arena, one of the last venues to be built on the Olympic Park, shows how far we have come since construction started in 2008. The venue will join the Aquatics Centre to form a dramatic and action-packed gateway to the Olympic Park when spectators arrive in 2012."

(CD/KMcA)