South Korea’s Seoul City has selected the winning design for the Gwangjang-dong Sports Complex construction project.
Seoul City will build Korea’s first hybrid wood structure multi-purpose international stadium near Gwangnaru Station on the Han River.
Seoul News said the scheme aims to transform a sports facility site located in Gwangjang-dong, Gwangjin-gu, into a citizen-centered open space by combining a professional sports venue capable of hosting international competitions with recreational sports and cultural facilities.
The joint entry submitted by Kawa Architects (Choi Sam-young), Isaek Architects (Park Chan-kyu), and DD Architects (Lee Jeong-seop) was selected as the final winning design. Construction is slated to begin in April 2028.
The final winning entry proposed an innovative design featuring a circular stadium with a hybrid timber structure, a rarity among large-scale domestic buildings.
The stadium, with its sophisticated sculptural beauty, settles beautifully into the urban landscape along the Han River, creating an elegant and stable landmark.
In particular, the project received high marks for presenting a spatial plan with depth without exaggeration, and for maximizing the sense of openness by weaving together public spaces that are fully open to citizens and traverse the site in a three-dimensional and continuous manner.
The Gwangjang-dong sports facility site, the target site for this project, has been the subject of development attempts for several years since its designation as an urban planning facility in 1978.
This was driven by the need to expand insufficient professional sports infrastructure and comprehensively reorganize the entire site. The project passed the Central Investment Review in July 2025, allowing for full-scale implementation.
Since establishing the development plan for the sports facility site in 2020, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has completed related administrative procedures, including a feasibility study and the Central Investment Review, in stages by July 2025.
The specialized sports facility will be developed to international standards and will be capable of hosting international competitions and athlete training for combat sports such as Taekwondo, Judo, and Wrestling, thereby significantly enhancing Seoul’s competitiveness as a sports city.
Furthermore, on days without competitions, it is planned to be used for recreational sports for residents and cultural performances.
The city intends to proceed with the project sequentially, aiming to begin construction in April 2028 and complete it in August 2031, following an 18-month design period after signing a design contract with the winner.
Kim Yong-hak, Director General of Future Space Planning at the Seoul Metropolitan Government, said, “The Gwangjang-dong Multi-purpose Sports Facility will be developed into an open public space where citizens’ daily lives and international sports culture coexist, going beyond a simple sports facility.
“Moving forward, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will continue to create excellent public architecture that enhances the city’s public nature and competitiveness, based on a fair and professional design competition system.”
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