Turkish firm shortlisted in design contest

Meltem Kara ISTANBUL / Hürriyet

Tabanlıoğlu Mimarlık, a local architectural firm, has been shortlisted in the new National Stadium Design Competition in Tokyo, one of Istanbul’s challengers in the bid to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

The Japan Sport Council has shortlisted 11 projects out of 46 candidates in the contest for the renovation of the stadium, which has been in use for more than 50 years and accommodated the Tokyo Olympic Games in 1964.

“First of all, there were certain important criteria to fulfill in order to qualify for the contest, including having won prestigious international architectural awards and experience in stadium design,” said Melkan Gürsel Tabanlıoğlu, a partner of Tabanlıoğu Mimarlık.

The result of the competition will be revealed in the second half of this month and the first three projects will be awarded then, he said. The stadium will have a capacity of 80,000 seats and is planned to be ready for the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

“We included in our project squares and refreshment areas, turning the venue into a meeting point,” Tabanlıoğlu said.