Alster-Schwimmhalle

Swimming venue in Hamburg, Germany

53°33′36″N 10°01′18″E / 53.56000°N 10.02167°E / 53.56000; 10.02167Opened20 January 1973Construction costDM 36 millionArchitect(s)Niessen + Störmer,
Jörg Schlaich (struct. eng.)Main poolLength50 m (160 ft)Width25 m (82 ft)Depth1.8–5.0 m (5.9–16.4 ft)Lanes10

The Alster-Schwimmhalle is one of Germany's larger aquatics centers, located in the Hamburg district of Hohenfelde. Opened in 1973, it has regularly hosted various national and international swimming competitions.

The Alster-Schwimmhalle is notable for its 102 m (335 ft) by 52 m (171 ft) double hyperbolic-paraboloid concrete-shell roof structure,^[1]^[2] designed by Jörg Schlaich, then partner at Stuttgart-based engineering firm Leonhardt & Andrä. Resting on three bearings and only 8 cm (3.1 in) thin, the concrete roof remains one the world's largest of its kind.^[3]^[4] Reminiscent of a butterfly –an allegory to its function as a swimming venue– the airy roof structure earned the Alsterschwimmhalle its nickname as "Schwimmoper" (Aquatic Opera).

The building was substantially renovated in 2007 at a cost of approx 1 mio EUR. A further major renovation is planned for 2020 to 2024 at an expected cost of 60 mio EUR, closing the facility for four years.^[5]

Facilities

Aquatics

indoor long course swimming pool: 50 m (164 ft 1 in) length by 25 m (82 ft 0 in) width; the pool's depth is between 1,8 m and 5,0 m
indoor multi-purpose & aquafitness pool: 25 m (82 ft 0 in) length by 10 m (32 ft 10 in) width; the pool's depth is between 0,9 m and 1,3 m
indoor diving platforms: at 1,0 m, 3,0 m, 5,0 m, 7,5 m and 10,0 m height
indoor water slide: at a length of 76 m
heated, outdoor swimming pool: 145m² area; the pool's depth is 1,35 m

Other amenities

workout and fitness studios
3 Finnish saunas, 2 aroma saunas
steam baths, hot and cold tubs
phonothek, indoor and outdoor resting areas, lawn
sauna bar, sun deck, restaurant
day spa and massage service

References

^ Paduart, André (March 1972). "General Report on Session IV". Journal of the International Association for Shell Structures (IASS). Madrid: CEDEX. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
^ Sack, Manfred (January 1973). "Das Dach von Hamburg". Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved 14 November 2015.
^ Holgate, Alan (1997). The Art of Structural Engineering. Stuttgart: Edition Axel Menges. pp. 46–51. ISBN 3930698676.
^ Röhrig, Roman (January 2012). "Leonhardt, Fritz (1909-1999)". Cottbus: Brandenburgische Technische Universität (in German). Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
^ "So soll die neue Alsterschwimmhalle aussehen (This is what the new Alsterschwimmhalle will look like)". NDR.de. 2018-06-14. Retrieved 2019-03-10.