Yoyogi National Stadium (Japanese: 国立代々木競技場, Hepburn: Kokuritsu Yoyogi Kyōgi-jō), also known as Yoyogi National Gymnasium, is a sports facility at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. It consists of a 'First Gymnasium', famous for its suspension roof design, and a 'Second Gymnasium', also referred to as the "Annex". Originally built to host events for the 1964 Summer Olympics, today the stadium is regularly used for sport and entertainment events. The NHK studios are adjacent to the arena along the edge of Yoyogi Park. Therefore, images of the arena are regularly featured at the end of NHK Newsline broadcasts.
Recorded Here
Recorded or filmed here, from this catalogue:
- L'Arc~en~Ciel - TOUR 2007~2008 THEATER of KISS - L'Arc~en~Ciel, released August 27, 2008 (
KSBL-5909). Recorded At. - SEIKIMA-II - Kikan Sai-enchō Sai-shūketsu 35++ Shūnen no Daikoku Misa Tour -Tōkyō- FINAL - SEIKIMA-II, released November 29, 2023 (
BVXL-116). Recorded At.
History
Translated from the ja.wikipedia article 国立代々木競技場 (CC BY-SA 4.0), revision 110610046.
Overview
The National Yoyogi Gymnasium, built in preparation for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, hosted swimming events in the First Gymnasium (the main building, also known as the “Yoyogi Olympic Pool”) and basketball events in the Second Gymnasium (the annex). It also served as the venue for handball at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, held in 2021, and for badminton and wheelchair rugby at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
In 2021, the First Gymnasium and Second Gymnasium were designated Important Cultural Properties of Japan for reasons including their status as “landmarks of postwar architecture with dynamic exteriors and magnificent interior spaces,” and for having brought together leading engineers of the period to develop and employ unprecedented techniques and construction methods, achieving an unparalleled dynamic architecture that integrated design, structure, and function to an extremely high standard. They were recognized as highly valuable examples of postwar modernist architecture, outstanding both in design and technology.
In 2020, Kengo Kuma and others established the General Incorporated Association for the Promotion of World Heritage Registration of the National Yoyogi Gymnasium (GYSC). A movement aimed at securing World Heritage registration has been developed, led primarily by architects and researchers of architecture.
Architectural Structure
The gymnasiums were designed architecturally by Kenzo Tange (丹下健三) and structurally by Yoshikatsu Tsuboi (坪井善勝), and are renowned as representative works of Tange and Tsuboi. Both the First Gymnasium and Second Gymnasium employ suspension-structure technology similar to that used in suspension bridges: the entire roof of the First Gymnasium is suspended from two main pillars, while that of the Second Gymnasium is suspended from one. The buildings have an unusual column-free interior structure, devised to allow spectators to concentrate on the competitions. To stabilize the suspended ceilings and prevent problems during disasters such as typhoons, the roofs incorporate hydraulic dampers, or vibration-control dampers, to suppress vibration. They were the first buildings in Japan to use hydraulic dampers for vibration control.
The site had previously been occupied by Washington Heights, a United States military facility. Due to difficulties in negotiations with the United States military over its return, construction did not begin until February 1963, the year before the Olympics. As a result, completion was delayed until only 39 days before the opening of the Tokyo Olympics. From July 1964 onward, construction proceeded around the clock, day and night, in what was truly rushed construction.
The buildings were so highly regarded that, during the Tokyo Olympics, the head of the United States swimming team was reportedly said to have asked for his bones to be buried at the base of the diving platform in the future. They have been highly acclaimed as outstanding examples of postwar Japanese architecture. In recognition of his achievement in designing the gymnasiums, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) honored Kenzo Tange as a special meritorious contributor, together with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Japan Olympic Organizing Committee. At the award ceremony, IOC President Avery Brundage praised Tange's architecture as follows: “Just as sport inspired the architect, and as shown by the many world records set in this arena, might it not be said that this work stirred the strength of the athletes? This arena will undoubtedly remain clearly engraved in the memories of those fortunate enough to participate in the Games and of those lovers of beauty who were able to watch them.”
In 1999, the National Indoor General Stadium was selected as one of Japan's 20 modern architectural works, in the DOCOMOMO Japan selection of buildings of the Modern Movement in Japan.
It was subsequently discovered that construction materials contained asbestos, and comprehensive asbestos removal work was carried out from August 2006. The Second Gymnasium was closed for work from August 2006 to March 2007, while the First Gymnasium was closed for eight months from January 2007. Major events during this period were relocated to other venues in the Kanto region.
From 2010 to 2011, the roofs of both the First Gymnasium and Second Gymnasium were completely repainted for the first time since their completion in 1964.
On April 20, 2016, the Japan Sport Council (JSC) announced that the first seismic retrofitting work would be carried out from fiscal 2017 through fiscal 2019, during which the First Gymnasium, Second Gymnasium, and indoor swimming pool would be unavailable. The construction period was scheduled to last 22 months, with the aim of completing the work in time for the pre-Olympic events in the year before the 2020 Olympics. The work was completed and use resumed in November 2019. During this period, Alvark Tokyo of the B.League, which used the venue as its home arena, temporarily used Arena Tachikawa Tachihi as its main venue.
First Gymnasium
As of 2022, it is used primarily as an indoor sports arena for volleyball, futsal and handball. The First Gymnasium is also used as the venue for the annual Japan Cheerleading Championship. It has a high occupancy rate, having been used on 329 days in fiscal year 2015. As the arena area is spacious and allows for runways and elaborate staging, it is also frequently used as an event hall for concerts, live events and martial arts competitions, as noted above.
To accommodate events other than competitive swimming, it was designed to operate as an ice rink in winter and as a gymnasium in spring and autumn, when wooden panels are placed over the pool area. Although the pool met international standards when it was built, it no longer complied with updated standards for competitive swimming. Following the completion of the Tokyo Tatsumi International Swimming Center in August 1993, it has not been used as a competitive swimming facility. Its use as a summer swimming pool and its operation as an ice rink ended in 1997 and 2005, respectively, and the remaining diving platforms were removed in April 2002. However, the pool structure has been retained in consideration of its effect on the suspended-roof structure; a steel framework has simply been erected inside the pool and covered over.
The adjacent sub-pool, “Indoor 50”, remains in use as a pool and is rented exclusively to groups.
Use for purposes other than sports was considered from the design stage. The design incorporated features of a multipurpose hall, drawing on the experience of Tange's earlier works, including the Ehime Prefectural Hall, completed in 1953 and a recipient of the Architectural Institute of Japan Award, and some consideration was also given to acoustics. Consequently, following its first use as a concert venue by CHAGE and ASKA in 1983, it has increasingly been used for concerts. However, as the acoustic considerations reflected the level of technology available in the first half of the 1960s, when the facility was built, its acoustics cannot be regarded as good by modern standards.
As of 2024, the artist with the highest number of concert performances at the venue is V6, with 102 performances, including performances held without an audience.
Facility overview
Total floor area: 28,705 m² Arena area: 4,000 m² (maximum 47.7 m north–south × maximum 96 m east–west) Capacity: 12,898 seats Stand seating: 8,636 seats Seating for persons with disabilities: 104 seats Guest seating: 34 seats Arena seating: up to 4,124 seats
Second Gymnasium
The Second Gymnasium is used primarily as a basketball venue. Its spectator seating is arranged in a bowl shape, and it is also used as a professional wrestling venue.
Facilities
Total floor area: 5,644 m² Arena area: 1,300 m² Capacity: 4,002 seats Fixed seating: 2,803 seats Seats for persons with disabilities: 8 seats Arena seating: up to 1,191 seats
Futsal Courts
Outdoor futsal courts adjacent to the First Gymnasium. They held a pre-opening in January 2012 and opened in April.
Facility overview
There are four outdoor futsal courts: three long-pile artificial turf courts (38 m × 19 m) and one short-pile artificial turf court (38 m × 19 m). Night lighting facilities are available.
Plazas
There are three plazas within the stadium grounds, which are used for various events. Their surfaces were constructed using repurposed paving stones from the Tokyo streetcar system, which had been discontinued shortly before.
Olympic Plaza
A plaza located west of the First Gymnasium and north of the Second Gymnasium. It is adjacent to Yoyogi Park. It was formerly often used for Cirque du Soleil performances in Tokyo, when the name Harajuku Big Top was used. Tokyo performances from 2014 onward have been held at Odaiba Big Top in the Aomi area.
Shibuya Plaza
A plaza on the south side of the Second Gymnasium, facing towards Shibuya Station. It faces Shibuya Koen-dori.
Harajuku Plaza
A plaza in front of the Harajuku-side entrance of the First Gymnasium. From 1993 to 2002, during the Christmas season, Dreams Come True installed a giant Christmas tree there under the title “WINTER FANTASIA”.
Sources
- Wikidata entity Q1069457.
- en.wikipedia, Yoyogi National Stadium (revision 1372266338), CC BY-SA 4.0.
- ja.wikipedia, 国立代々木競技場 (revision 111001256), CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photograph: Yoyogi-National-Gymnasium-01.jpg on Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0, by Rs1421.
