Beijing Olympic Stadium now complete

China's National Stadium, known as the Bird's Nest, is now fully operational, signaling the readiness of all 37 venues for next month's Beijing Olympics.

Covering 20.4 hectares in the Beijing Olympic Green, the bowl-shaped and girder-structured ânestâ will stage the opening and closing ceremonies, track and field events, men's football, and some events for the later Paralympics.

The eye-catching design came from Pritzker Prize-winners Herzong & DeMeuron (Swiss) and Chinese architect Li Xinggang.

The stadium's 91,000 seats are settled in an interlocking network of steel bars, which makes every single seat equal to each other and brings the audience close to the action in the stadium.

Speaking as China's National Stadium resonated was completed BOCOG President Liu Qi, stated, "after years of effort, the National Stadium is finally completed. We hope that we can provide better services for the Olympic Games with better equipment."

Tan Xiaochun, Chief of the Bird's Nest project added, "the Bird's Nest is the last completed Olympic venue but the best."

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