PTW: Architects of the Republic of the Congo’s All Africa Games Olympic Facility

Next year the Republic of the Congo will host the 2015 All Africa Games in its capital Brazzaville. 2015 will mark the triumphant return of the All Africa Games to the city where it began when the first ever All Africa Games were played in Brazzaville in the summer of 1965. President Denis Sassou Nguesso inaugurated the beginning of construction back in February of this year. The concept art of the Oylmpic village is beautiful, but who is doing the construction? The answer is the Australian architecture firm PTW Architects.

PTW was established by James Peddle in 1889—Peddle being the P in PTW. The T would come from Samuel George Thorp who became a partner in the early 20th century.  H. Ernest Walker became the third partner in 1924, thus creating PTW. Peddle initially had success in adapting the architecture he had learned while in England and the U.S. to Australia, namely Sydney. It was around the time that Walker joined that PTW moved from just domestic construction to flourishing in commercial and industrial architecture. To this day the highest density of PTW buildings are in and around Sydney. Since their humble beginnings, however, PTW has taken on some massive projects.

Most of PTW’s projects are high-rise commercial buildings and residential complexes. The firm also has designed and constructed a number of art galleries in its native Australia. They began expanding their operations to building hotels, high-end fitness and health centers, and sports facilities. In 2004 they worked with Jacobs Gibb Ltd. To design the Athens Olympic Overlay, the operational designs that transforms the base venue into an Olympic standard facility. In 2008 PTW once again took up Olympic sports construction. For that year’s summer games held in Beijing, PTW designed the Watercube, also called the National Swimming Centre. All aquatic competitions took place in this state-of-the-art facility, one that is energy efficient by maximizing natural light and harnessing solar energy to heat the interior and the pools. Since then, the Watercube has undergone a massive renovation that turned the Olympic facility into an incredible water park.

PTW is now involved in the construction of the largest sports complex in the Republic of the Congo, as well as the country’s largest stadium. The whole Olympic complex is situated in Kintele covering an area of 804,300 square meters, of which 200,000 is set aside for roads and parking. In terms of buildings, the complex will be complete with a stadium capable of seating 60,055 people; a sports palace with 10,140 seats, a center for aquatic activities with 2,028 seats, hotel buildings, media and administrative center, café and restaurant, exhibition center, the Olympic village to house the athletes and, of course, a heliport. The facility is also outfitted with all the latest technical features that a sports complex requires.

That includes a communications system for receiving and broadcasting over satellite and radio, state-of the-art surround sound system with a giant television screen, full ventilation system air treatment and, crucial for Brazzaville, air conditioning. Thus next year will be an exciting year for the up-and-coming African nation of the Republic of the Congo. President Denis Sassou Nguesso has been overseeing a massive overhaul and modernization of the Congo’s infrastructure. For the most part, this has involved the construction of energy plants, housing, communications, but what modern infrastructure is truly complete without a fully modern sports facility? Now the Republic of the Congo will have one that stands among the best sports complexes in the world.