Fjellhallen
Encyclopedia
Gjøvik Olympic Cavern Hall ( or ) is an ice hockey rink located within a mountain hall in Gjøvik
, Norway
. With a capacity for 5,500 spectators, the hall also features a 25-meter swimming pool
and telecommunications installations. Opened in 1993 and costing 134.6 million Norwegian krone
(NOK), it was built for the 1994 Winter Olympics
, where it hosted 16 ice hockey matches
. It is the home of Gjøvik Hockey
, has hosted the 1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
and is also used as an event venue. The structure is the world's largest cavern hall for public use.
A budget was prepared by the Lillehammer Olympic Organizing Committee (LOOC) in December 1989, and in April 1990, the Parliament of Norway passed a grant. In October, LOOC and Gjøvik Municipality made an agreement to share the ownership of the venue. The municipal council took the decision to build underground on 24 January 1991 and the main planning was contracted to Fortifikasjon. Main architects were Moe–Levorsen. A research group was created, which had four main tasks: ventilation, energy, fire and safety; the environment; rock mechanism and geology; and laws and regulations. The group also made marketing information to promote Norwegian underground technology internationally. In preparation for construction, drilling samples were taken and sent to SINTEF
and the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute
for testing. The rock is 800 to 1,100 million year-old gneiss
which is well suited for creating caverns. Computer models were created, and estimates were based on the Q-method.
Construction started on 1 April 1991. Several points of attack were created to get the most rational work-load. The first tunnel was created 10 metres (32.8 ft) below the level of the roof of the cavern. First the roof was blasted, then work started downwards. The first eight months were used for excavation, and 140000 cubic metres (4,944,053.3 cu ft) of rock in 29,000 truckloads were removed. 170 tonnes (167.3 LT) of dynamite were used during blasting. The mass was used to build a new marina
, a lake-side promenade and a parking facility. Throughout construction, surveillance was made continually of the rock, and the crown of the roof was measured to have settled 8 millimetre, which was as expected. Safety planning was done in cooperation with the National Office of Building Technology and Administration
, and included the use of inflammable materials, creation of sufficient fire exits.
The hall cost NOK 134.6 million, of which NOK 88.5 million was grants from the government. The hall opened on 6 May 1993, with a show televised on national television and with 5,000 guests. It was the 29th indoor ice hockey rink in Norway, and the world's largest cavern hall for public use. At the time of opening, the venue was estimated to incur a operating cost of NOK 3 to 4 four million, and an operating deficit of NOK 1.7 million. To finance this, the state established a fund similar to other Olympic venues, but the fund only received NOK 1 million, and the rest of the operating costs would have to be taken by the municipality. The venue is owned through Gjøvik Olympiske Anlegg, originally owned 70% by Gjøvik Municipality and 30% by Lillehammer Olympiapark, but later taken entirely over by the municipality.
. The main hall is designed as a multi-use venue, and can feature indoor football, handball
, basketball
, volleyball
, rifling
and tennis
, as well as concerts, dining and events.
The gross area of the complex is 14910 square metres (17,832.2 sq yd), while the net area is 10010 square metres (11,971.9 sq yd). The stadium covers 1965 square metres (2,350.1 sq yd), the public areas cover 2224 square metres (2,659.9 sq yd), the media center covers 2110 square metres (2,523.5 sq yd), the participant facilities cover 263 square metres (314.5 sq yd), the administrative and VIP facilities cover 577 square metres (690.1 sq yd), and the operations, management, technical, electrical and storage facilities cover 2253 square metres (2,694.6 sq yd). The main hall cavern has is 61 metres (200.1 ft) wide, 91 metres (298.6 ft) long and 25 metres (82 ft) high. Seating capacity for the ice rink is 5,800, although it was 5,300 during the Olympics. The grandstands have a safety area under them; in case of a fire, spectators can be evacuated to these areas where they would remain until evacuation is safe. The hall duplicates as a civil defense facility, and is designed to withstand nuclear, conventional and gas attacks.
The Olympic venues
were designed to reflect Norwegian culture and character. The hall was designed to play on Scandinavian folklore
, such as the Hall of the Mountain King
in Henrik Ibsen
's Peer Gynt
and the caves of fairy-tale troll
s. This has for instance been emulated through the use of shotcrete
on the walls to give a dark and mysterious impression. Lighting is used to create high contrast, such as from the entrance which is dark with pools of light, to the main hall which is brightly lit, to emphasize its size. The dark entrance is also used to adjust the spectators' eyes so the main hall seems brighter. A contrast has also been used between the grandstands' slender lines and the coarse finish of the cavern rock. Red was chosen as the hall's main color because of natural occurrence of red in the rock. Glass tiles are used as they give associations to ice. Ventilation, energy and other installations use shine metal, representing silver embedded in the rock. The main hall is designed as an amphitheater with close contact between spectators and athletes.
, Gjøvik Olympic Cavern Hall hosted 16 ice hockey matches
between 12 and 26 February, including two quarter-finals and one semi-final. The remaining matches were played at the larger Håkons Hall in Lillehammer
. In March 1995, the operator announced that the ice would remain throughout the year. Because of the natural cooling of the mountain, the operator saved 1,000 kilowatts in heating costs by reusing the cooling system to heat the rest of the cavern hall. On 4 April 1995, the venue was used to host an international match between Norway and Sweden.
Originally the 1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
was planned to take place at Hamar Olympic Amphitheatre in Hamar, the same venue which hosted short track speed skating at the 1994 Winter Olympics
. However, because Storhamar
was at scheduled time playing play-offs in the Norwegian Ice Hockey Championship
, it was in December 1994 decided to move the tournament to Gjøvik. The championship opened on Friday 17 March with the 1500 meter races, and was followed by the 500 meter races the following day. The remaining events were held on 19 March. It is the only time the world championship has been held in Norway. There were set six world records during the championship. Chae Ji-Hoon
's time 4:56.29 in the men's 3000 meter and Chun Lee-Kyung
at 5:02.18 in the women's 3000 meter. Kim Yun-Mi set the record on the women's 500 meter at 45.33 in an introductory race, while Frederic Blackburn
set a world record at 2:19.71 in the semi-final of the 1500 meter. Both the relay teams also set world records: Canada with the men's record at 7:09.76 and the China with the women's at 4:26.68. The hall was one of seven venues used during the group state of the 1999 World Women's Handball Championship
.
Gjøvik
is a town and a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Gjøvik.In 1861, the village of Gjøvik in the municipality of Vardal was granted town status and was separated from Vardal to form a separate municipality...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. With a capacity for 5,500 spectators, the hall also features a 25-meter swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
and telecommunications installations. Opened in 1993 and costing 134.6 million Norwegian krone
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
(NOK), it was built for the 1994 Winter Olympics
1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat...
, where it hosted 16 ice hockey matches
Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics was held at the Fjellhallen in Gjøvik and the Håkons Hall in Lillehammer, Norway. The competition, held from February 12 to February 27, was won by Sweden and Canada as runner-up.-Final rankings:Source:* Gold -...
. It is the home of Gjøvik Hockey
Gjøvik Hockey
Gjøvik Hockey is an ice hockey team based in Gjøvik, Norway. They play in the First Division with Gjøvik Olympic Cavern Hall as their home arena....
, has hosted the 1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
The 1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships were held from 17 to 19 March 1995 in Gjøvik Olympic Cavern Hall in Gjøvik, Norway. They were the twentieth World Short Track Speed Skating Championships and the first to be held in Norway. It consisted of ten events, five for men and five for...
and is also used as an event venue. The structure is the world's largest cavern hall for public use.
Construction
Because half the country's surface consists of exposed rock, Norway has a tradition of building mountain cavern halls for many purposes, from tunnels via power plants to sport centers. These often double up as bomb shelters. Gjøvik Municipality opened Norway's first underground swimming pool in 1974. The idea to build an underground ice rink came from Consulting Engineer Jan A. Rygh while having dinner with Municipal Engineer Helge Simenstad in 1988, after the latter said that Gjøvik had been awarded an ice rink for the Olympics. The first drafts were made on a napkin in the restaurant. An alternative proposal for a conventional rink was also made. Among the advantage of a cavern hall was that it would not take up valuable downtown property space or interfere with the town's cityscape, yet it would be centrally located which would reduce travel costs, and there would be a stable year-round natural temperature which would reduce cooling costs.A budget was prepared by the Lillehammer Olympic Organizing Committee (LOOC) in December 1989, and in April 1990, the Parliament of Norway passed a grant. In October, LOOC and Gjøvik Municipality made an agreement to share the ownership of the venue. The municipal council took the decision to build underground on 24 January 1991 and the main planning was contracted to Fortifikasjon. Main architects were Moe–Levorsen. A research group was created, which had four main tasks: ventilation, energy, fire and safety; the environment; rock mechanism and geology; and laws and regulations. The group also made marketing information to promote Norwegian underground technology internationally. In preparation for construction, drilling samples were taken and sent to SINTEF
SINTEF
SINTEF , headquartered in Trondheim, Norway, is the largest independent research organisation in Scandinavia. Every year, SINTEF supports research and development at 2,000 or so Norwegian and overseas companies via its research and development activity....
and the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute
Norwegian Geotechnical Institute
Norwegian Geotechnical Institute is a private foundation based in Norway doing research and consulting in the geosciences, including soil, rock and snow....
for testing. The rock is 800 to 1,100 million year-old gneiss
Gneiss
Gneiss is a common and widely distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations that were originally either igneous or sedimentary rocks.-Etymology:...
which is well suited for creating caverns. Computer models were created, and estimates were based on the Q-method.
Construction started on 1 April 1991. Several points of attack were created to get the most rational work-load. The first tunnel was created 10 metres (32.8 ft) below the level of the roof of the cavern. First the roof was blasted, then work started downwards. The first eight months were used for excavation, and 140000 cubic metres (4,944,053.3 cu ft) of rock in 29,000 truckloads were removed. 170 tonnes (167.3 LT) of dynamite were used during blasting. The mass was used to build a new marina
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
, a lake-side promenade and a parking facility. Throughout construction, surveillance was made continually of the rock, and the crown of the roof was measured to have settled 8 millimetre, which was as expected. Safety planning was done in cooperation with the National Office of Building Technology and Administration
National Office of Building Technology and Administration
The National Office of Building Technology and Administration is a Norwegian government agency that is resopnsible for managing laws and rules related to building and construction, authorises rules related to documentation of construction materials and their properties, as well as approving...
, and included the use of inflammable materials, creation of sufficient fire exits.
The hall cost NOK 134.6 million, of which NOK 88.5 million was grants from the government. The hall opened on 6 May 1993, with a show televised on national television and with 5,000 guests. It was the 29th indoor ice hockey rink in Norway, and the world's largest cavern hall for public use. At the time of opening, the venue was estimated to incur a operating cost of NOK 3 to 4 four million, and an operating deficit of NOK 1.7 million. To finance this, the state established a fund similar to other Olympic venues, but the fund only received NOK 1 million, and the rest of the operating costs would have to be taken by the municipality. The venue is owned through Gjøvik Olympiske Anlegg, originally owned 70% by Gjøvik Municipality and 30% by Lillehammer Olympiapark, but later taken entirely over by the municipality.
Facilities
The facility is located just west of the town center of Gjøvik, with the main hall 120 metres (393.7 ft) into the mountain. It is covered by 25 metre of bedrock. In addition to a main hall, there is a swimming pool, a cafeteria and a telecommunications facility operated by TelenorTelenor
Telenor Group is the incumbent telecommunications company in Norway, with headquarters located at Fornebu, close to Oslo. Today, Telenor Group is mostly an international wireless carrier with operations in Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and Asia, working predominantly under the Telenor brand...
. The main hall is designed as a multi-use venue, and can feature indoor football, handball
Team handball
Handball is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each pass a ball to throw it into the goal of the other team...
, basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, rifling
Rifling
Rifling is the process of making helical grooves in the barrel of a gun or firearm, which imparts a spin to a projectile around its long axis...
and tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, as well as concerts, dining and events.
The gross area of the complex is 14910 square metres (17,832.2 sq yd), while the net area is 10010 square metres (11,971.9 sq yd). The stadium covers 1965 square metres (2,350.1 sq yd), the public areas cover 2224 square metres (2,659.9 sq yd), the media center covers 2110 square metres (2,523.5 sq yd), the participant facilities cover 263 square metres (314.5 sq yd), the administrative and VIP facilities cover 577 square metres (690.1 sq yd), and the operations, management, technical, electrical and storage facilities cover 2253 square metres (2,694.6 sq yd). The main hall cavern has is 61 metres (200.1 ft) wide, 91 metres (298.6 ft) long and 25 metres (82 ft) high. Seating capacity for the ice rink is 5,800, although it was 5,300 during the Olympics. The grandstands have a safety area under them; in case of a fire, spectators can be evacuated to these areas where they would remain until evacuation is safe. The hall duplicates as a civil defense facility, and is designed to withstand nuclear, conventional and gas attacks.
The Olympic venues
Venues of the 1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics were held in and around Lillehammer, Norway, from 12 to 27 February 1994. Ten competition and fourteen non-competitions venues were used, most of which were subsequently used for the 1994 Winter Paralympics. The Games were spread out over ten venues in five municipalities...
were designed to reflect Norwegian culture and character. The hall was designed to play on Scandinavian folklore
Scandinavian folklore
Scandinavian folklore is the folklore of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and the Swedish speaking parts of Finland.Collecting folklore began when Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden sent out instructions to all of the priests in all of the parishes to collect the folklore of their area...
, such as the Hall of the Mountain King
In the Hall of the Mountain King
In the Hall of the Mountain King is a piece of orchestral music composed by Edvard Grieg for the sixth scene of Act II in Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt, which premiered in Christiania on February 24, 1876....
in Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
's Peer Gynt
Peer Gynt
Peer Gynt is a five-act play in verse by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen, loosely based on the fairy tale Per Gynt. It is the most widely performed Norwegian play. According to Klaus Van Den Berg, the "cinematic script blends poetry with social satire and realistic scenes with surreal ones"...
and the caves of fairy-tale troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
s. This has for instance been emulated through the use of shotcrete
Shotcrete
Shotcrete is concrete conveyed through a hose and pneumatically projected at high velocity onto a surface, as a construction technique....
on the walls to give a dark and mysterious impression. Lighting is used to create high contrast, such as from the entrance which is dark with pools of light, to the main hall which is brightly lit, to emphasize its size. The dark entrance is also used to adjust the spectators' eyes so the main hall seems brighter. A contrast has also been used between the grandstands' slender lines and the coarse finish of the cavern rock. Red was chosen as the hall's main color because of natural occurrence of red in the rock. Glass tiles are used as they give associations to ice. Ventilation, energy and other installations use shine metal, representing silver embedded in the rock. The main hall is designed as an amphitheater with close contact between spectators and athletes.
Events
Since the opening, the venue has hosted Gjøvik Hockey, which started in 1993 in the Fourth Division. During the 1994 Winter Olympics1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat...
, Gjøvik Olympic Cavern Hall hosted 16 ice hockey matches
Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics was held at the Fjellhallen in Gjøvik and the Håkons Hall in Lillehammer, Norway. The competition, held from February 12 to February 27, was won by Sweden and Canada as runner-up.-Final rankings:Source:* Gold -...
between 12 and 26 February, including two quarter-finals and one semi-final. The remaining matches were played at the larger Håkons Hall in Lillehammer
Lillehammer
is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway, globally known for hosting the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of May 2011, the population of the town of Lillehammer was...
. In March 1995, the operator announced that the ice would remain throughout the year. Because of the natural cooling of the mountain, the operator saved 1,000 kilowatts in heating costs by reusing the cooling system to heat the rest of the cavern hall. On 4 April 1995, the venue was used to host an international match between Norway and Sweden.
Originally the 1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
The 1995 World Short Track Speed Skating Championships were held from 17 to 19 March 1995 in Gjøvik Olympic Cavern Hall in Gjøvik, Norway. They were the twentieth World Short Track Speed Skating Championships and the first to be held in Norway. It consisted of ten events, five for men and five for...
was planned to take place at Hamar Olympic Amphitheatre in Hamar, the same venue which hosted short track speed skating at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Short track speed skating at the 1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympic Games Short Track results-500m:-1,000m:This unique race was one of the most unusual in the short history of short track speed skating. The bronze medal was won by an athlete that was not even in the final race. Derrick Campbell of Canada was obstructed by the Briton Nicky...
. However, because Storhamar
Storhamar Dragons
The Storhamar Dragons is an ice hockey club based in Hamar, Norway and plays in the GET-ligaen. The club also includes the largest junior department in Norwegian ice hockey.The ice hockey department of the Storhamar IL was founded on 18 March 1957...
was at scheduled time playing play-offs in the Norwegian Ice Hockey Championship
GET-ligaen
GET-ligaen is the premier Norwegian ice hockey league, organised by the Norwegian Ice Hockey Federation. The league was known as 1. divisjon until 1990, when it was reorganized and named Eliteserien . That name was held until 2004 when cable TV company UPC became main sponsor...
, it was in December 1994 decided to move the tournament to Gjøvik. The championship opened on Friday 17 March with the 1500 meter races, and was followed by the 500 meter races the following day. The remaining events were held on 19 March. It is the only time the world championship has been held in Norway. There were set six world records during the championship. Chae Ji-Hoon
Chae Ji-Hoon
Chae Ji-Hoon is a retired South Korean short track speed skater-Playing career:...
's time 4:56.29 in the men's 3000 meter and Chun Lee-Kyung
Chun Lee-kyung
Chun Lee-Kyung is a retired South Korean short track speed skater. She is a four-time Olympic Champion and three-time Overall World Champion for 1995-1997...
at 5:02.18 in the women's 3000 meter. Kim Yun-Mi set the record on the women's 500 meter at 45.33 in an introductory race, while Frederic Blackburn
Frédéric Blackburn
Frédéric Blackburn is a Canadian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics and in the 1994 Winter Olympics.In 1992 he won a silver medal in the 1000 metre short track event...
set a world record at 2:19.71 in the semi-final of the 1500 meter. Both the relay teams also set world records: Canada with the men's record at 7:09.76 and the China with the women's at 4:26.68. The hall was one of seven venues used during the group state of the 1999 World Women's Handball Championship
1999 World Women's Handball Championship
-Group B:---------------------------------------------------------Group C:---------------------------------------------------------Group D:----------------------------------------...
.