Swimming and Ice Skating: Lentpark in Cologne

The new ice skating and swimming stadium “Lentpark” accommodates two ice rinks, an indoor swimming centre with a variety of pools, a sauna, an outdoor natural water swimming pond and a restaurant. An elevated ice skating track runs as a round circuit through every part of the building providing exciting views inside and outside. An intelligent cross-linking of the building services allows for the seemingly contradictory climatic requirements of an ice and swimming facility to operate in an energy-efficient manner.

Architects: Schulitz Architekten
Location: Lentstraße 30, 50668 Cologne, Germany

Lentpark is the first ice skating facility in Europe which is part of the GreenBuilding Programm of the European Commission. It won a bronze medal at the 2013 IOC / IAKS Awards. The jury said: “An ice skating track on the upper level embraces a swimming pool and ice hockey rink at the lower level. The jury very much liked this ingenious design idea and praised the client’s and also the architect’s braveness to offer this new kind of combined sports and leisure facility to the citizens of Cologne. The attractiveness of their approach is proven by the high number of users from the very beginning. The horizontal structured façades underline the building’s claim to be a dynamic and sporty place.”

On the north-west side lies the 1,800m² ice rink. On the south-east side the lap pool and recreational pools can be found. The entrance hall is centrally located and functions to divide the building’s main elements: water and ice. All areas combine a gross floor area of 12,000m². The park-like landscaped outdoor area offers a natural water pool as well as a relaxation area. A primary attraction is the 260m-long elevated ice skating track that lies above the ice hockey rink and is visually connected to the swimming area. A highly insulated glass façade serves to divide the ice track and the swimming area climatically.

Project data

Client/Operator: Kölnbäder GmbH
Size of site: 25,000 m²
Activity/Competition area: 20,300 m²
Spectator facilities: 380
Start of construction: 6/2009
Commissioning: 10/2011
Construction costs: Euro 20 million
Operating costs in 2012: Euro 2.8 million
Number of athletes/users in 2012: 400,000