(Beijing, May 1) -- Beijing Olympic Village's newly built 42 apartment buildings and six service buildings have passed inspection, according to Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG), the general contractor of the Olympic Village project.
A BUCG official told Xinhuanet that the Olympic village covers an architectural area of 556,000 square meters and consists of 42 apartment buildings and 12 service buildings. Twenty-two of the apartment buildings are six-stories, while the other 20 are nine-stories.
The new apartment buildings are:
1. Spacious -- with an average living area of over 22 square meters
2. Environmentally-friendly -- incorporating green materials and energy-efficient glass
3. Designed with Chinese cultural elements
Functionally, the Olympic village is divided into two areas. The international area is where welcome ceremonies and other reception activities will be held. The living area has clinics, restaurants, multi-function libraries and entertainment centers, as well as a leisure sports zone where gyms, swimming pools, tennis courts, basketball courts and jogging tracks are available.
According to the official, the Olympic village will open up two weeks before the Opening Ceremony, providing living and leisure services to 16,000 athletes, coaches and delegation officials and over 7,000 journalists.
The Village will be turned into the Paralympic Village after the Olympic games.
Beijing Olympic Village is an important part of Beijing Olympic Park. It is positioned between the national forest park in the north and the main sports venues in the south. It has beautiful scenery and is easily accessible by various forms of transportation.
