Abstract: In the post-pandemic era, where public fitness is highly valued, conventional enclosed sports facilities no longer hold much appeal. Modern sports centers should not only fulfill their athletic functions but also serve as urban connection points and public life hubs, integrating seamlessly into the daily lives of citizens.

Part 1: Design Background

Gucun Sports Center is located within a sports park at the intersection of Panjing River and Bao’an Highway in Baoshan District, Shanghai. Historically, it was an integral part of the Baoshan Industrial Zone, and several industrial gantry crane remnants remain by the river. As urbanization progressed, industrial activities gradually moved away from this area, transforming the old riverside factories and industrial docks into a recreational sports park for citizens.

Part 2: Breaking Boundaries – Bringing Park Vitality into the Building through Multi-Level Walkways

In the current era, the traditional enclosed sports center is no longer attractive. Designers sought to create a space system accommodating various indoor and outdoor sports, breaking both spatial and operational time boundaries. The goal was to make the sports center a genuine hub of vitality and sports services for the region. 

To mitigate the massive building volume and blend the park's vitality with the architecture, designers introduced an abstract "mountain trail" within the traditional building structure. This trail, featuring multi-level large spectator steps, ramps, suspension bridges, and platforms, creates an outdoor path unrestricted by time. It connects the ground-floor climbing and swimming areas with the second-floor badminton and fitness centers. The second-floor "mountaintop terrace" is open 24/7, serving as a public viewing platform in the park, guided by the multi-level "mountain trail."

These variously leveled external spaces form an open running route that connects with the park's jogging paths, creating a comprehensive, open sports space system that overcomes the limitations of a closed venue.

Part 3: Reimagining Industrial Impressions – Revealing Historical Hints through Large Truss Structures

To present the grand spectator steps and urban viewing platforms, the building employs large steel trusses, each two meters high, to achieve a 12-meter structural cantilever. 

Confronted with this structural feature, designers opted against the traditional method of concealing it with sleek metal panels. Instead, they aimed to recreate the site’s industrial production memories by using semi-transparent metal mesh. This approach presents the aesthetically industrial steel trusses in a subtle manner, echoing the distant park’s gantry cranes and creating a dialogue spanning 70 years of historical impressions.

The building’s clean geometric lines also showcase a contemporary industrial aesthetic, using geometric language to respond to its industrial heritage.