Here's the new Holmenkollen

A jury formed to select the winning design for Oslo’s new ski jump at Holmenkollen recommended on Tuesday that the city award the job to a Danish architectural firm. It beat out a long list of other candidates to build what’s considered one of Norway’s leading landmarks.
Aftenposten

Aftenposten Article…

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Here’s the new Holmenkollen
By Nina Berglund
Published: September 4, 2007

A jury formed to select the winning design for Oslo’s new ski jump at Holmenkollen recommended on Tuesday that the city award the job to a Danish architectural firm. It beat out a long list of other candidates to build what’s considered one of Norway’s leading landmarks.

Copenhagen-based JDS Architects won the unanimous support of the jury set up by the city to choose the design of the new ski jump. It was praised for the “purity” of its lines, and public space at the top of the jump that will allow visitors to experience much the same as the ski jumpers do themselves.

JDS bills itself as a “multidisciplinary office” that focuses on architecture and design from large-scale planning to furniture. The firm was founded and is directed by Julien de Smedt, a Belgian architect now living in Copenhagen.

JDS’ proposed ski jump, called “Nye Holmenkollen Fyr,” features an open terrace at the top, which will offer a 360-degree view of the city, the fjord, and the surrounding hills and forests known as marka. The terrace will be heated, keeping it free of snow and open year-round.

The building under the jump will be pushed back into the hill, giving more room for the arena and landing area.

The new ski jump has had a budget of around NOK 500 million. The state has offered NOK 100 million to help foot the bill, much less than the city had wanted. Oslo officials hoped the state would at least pay half the cost.

It’s now up to the City Council to approve JDS’ design, before construction can begin as soon as the existing ski jump is torn down, probably late next spring. The new jump needs to be ready in 2010, a year before the Nordic World Championships are to be held in Oslo in 2011.

The ski museum at Holmenkollen, meanwhile, will remain open during the entire construction process. The state and private interests are funding an addition to the museum and the building of a new entrance, to receive visitors who make the trek up the hill from town.

The ski museum has been attracting more than 300,000 visitors a year, while the ski jump itself also has long ranked as among Norway’s top 10 tourist attractions.