Sport and architecture: It’s a slam dunk in the Olympics of NSW building design

Sport and architecture? It’s not always a slam dunk. This year’s 2024 NSW Architecture Awards look like the Olympics of building design: they have been dominated by an extraordinary wave of new sporting and outdoor recreational facilities catering to the millions of Sydneysiders who swim, surf, follow football of all types, or like to spot a whale.

The highest award for public architecture in NSW, the Sulman Medal, was awarded to the new Parramatta Aquatic Centre by Grimshaw & Andrew Burges Architects with McGregor Coxall. It is located in the middle of the world heritage UNESCO site.

Sienna Yip, 9, trials the children’s splash play area at Parramatta Aquatic Centre.Credit: Flavio Brancaleone

The public architecture jury, headed by Thierry Lacoste, said the centre was an incredible addition to Public Sydney and a different way of conceptualising an aquatic centre.

Lacoste, the principal of Lacoste + Stevenson, said the old aquatic centre, which was previously located on the site of Parramatta’s new football stadium, had a pool. “That was it,” he said.

Also winning an award for urban design, the new facility provided a range of community spaces and aquatic areas. “It’s very lovely,” Lacoste said. “The experience of visiting the pool is more about the landscape experience.”

Lacoste said the expectation for public buildings these days was that “they have a role to play, not just by themselves but by the way they are integrated into the local landscape.”

The concentration of facilities catering to sport stands in contrast to last year’s awards, which were dominated by classical culture, concert halls and galleries.

The Lloyd Rees Award for Urban Design (and an award for public architecture) was won by the new Sydney Football Stadium (Allianz) by Cox Architecture with Aspect Studios. Like the pool, the area around the arena is open to the public, adding spaces to walk.

The jury said it was a “transformative achievement, delivering long-term urban benefits to the Moore Park precinct. Transcending the typically cordoned stadium building, the design expands the surrounding public domain, replacing the blank walls and fencing of the previous stadium with a legible and accessible public realm.”

Twenty years ago, sporting facilities in Australia were all about putting bums on seats, says architect Ross Seymour, a principal at Grimshaw. Now they’re all about the user experience, said Seymour.

The average Australian may not notice the architecture, but they benefited from the design, he said.

At the new Sydney Football Stadium by Cox, and at Parramatta’s Western Sydney Stadium by Populous, Seymour said the steeper pitch of the stadiums meant fans were closer to the action, creating a cauldron of excitement.

“You get a better game experience, it’s more exciting, you feel like you are more engaged. Even the acoustics are improved,” he said.

While working at BVN, Seymour had proposed updating Sydney Olympic Stadium, designed by Populous to improve sight lines and increase the slope of the stands. But that work hadn’t proceeded.

Seymour, who did Olympic master planning before he joined Grimshaw, said the way community facilities and sports venues were designed had become more sophisticated.

Good design of sporting venues meant improved sight lines, better crowd flow, making it faster to get in and out of seats and improved food and cleaner toilets.

Like Lacoste, he said venues were under pressure to do more than one thing while serving the broader community.

A selection of the winners

• Lord Mayor’s Prize, Redfern Station, by DesignInc.
• The Premier’s Prize, Nightingale Marrickville by SJB.
• Blacket Prize, South East Centre for Contemporary Art, Sibling Architecture.
• Stephenson Award for Commercial Architecture, Campbell House Private, Tonkin Zulaikha Greer.
• The William E Kemp Award, St. Patrick’s College: Scientia Building, BVN.
• Enduring Architecture Award,Glass House, Ruth and Bill Lucas.
• The Greenway Award, The Porter House Hotel,  Candalepas Associates.
• The John Verge Award for Interior Architecture, 477 Pitt St., Wardle.
• The Hugh and Eva Buhrich award for alterations and additions, Aru House, Curious Practice.
• The Aaron Bolot Award for multiple housing (flats, etc), Iglu Mascot, Bates Smart.
• The Milo Dunphy Award for sustainable architecture, Barker College Maths and Student Hub, Architectus.
• Emerging architecture prize, Jennifer McMaster, TRIAS.

The Parramatta Aquatic Centre provides a range of community activities, which have been praised by visitors. “The circular shaped design is fascinating and aesthetically pleasing, a nice space to explore and walk through,” said a visitor. She praised the spa, the sauna, noted the different pools, including the outdoor 50-metre pool, the grass to sit on, and plenty of changing room options.

The Sydney Swans headquarters by Populous also won awards and commendations, along with Blacktown Exercise and Sports Technology Hub (BEST) by ARM Architecture with CO.OP Studio, and the Long Reef Surf Life Saving Club by Adriano Pupilli Architects.

The NSW Medallion was awarded to architects CHROFI with Bangawarra and the National Parks and Wildlife Service for the two new North Head Viewing Platforms.

See here for the entire list of nearly 90 awards.

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