The first piece of roof panelling has been put into place at the stadium in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, east London.

The lifting of the roof panel comes after several weeks of preparation works. Eight kilometres of cable net weighing 930 tonnes was lifted and connected over a four week period before 112 steel roof rafters, the longest of which is 38 metres, were lifted and secured into place.

-- Advertisement --

The 1 x 4.4 metre roof panel is the first of almost 10,000 panels to be fitted to the stadium. The roof will be split into two sections, a solid rear section and a translucent forward section. There will be 6,300 rear panels and 3,600 transparent polycarbonate panels at the front.

When complete, the new roof will be twice the size of the original at around 45,000 square metres. At 84 metres at its deepest point, it will be the longest cantilevered roof of its type in the world and will cover every seat in the Stadium, improving acoustics and the spectator experience for football matches, other sporting events and concerts.

(CD/JP)