Tokyo unveils new 2020 venue inspired by Japanese architecture

Organizers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on Tuesday unveiled a custom-built $188 million gymnastics venue inspired by Japanese architecture that uses wood brought from around the country.

The futuristic-looking Ariake Gymnastics Center in central Tokyo uses 2,300 cubic meters of wood and is intended to hark back to traditional building techniques that predated the use of modern materials.

The structure features a gently undulating roof, with external walls constructed from lengths of cedarwood.

Supporting rods allow the building to look from a distance as though it is suspended in the air.

Organizers said it was intended to look like "a wooden bowl, floating in the bay area."

The building, one of a handful custom-built for the games, "symbolizes Japan's wood culture and viewers can feel its simple beauty", the organizers said.

"We're using a lot of wood," venue general manager Koichi Fukui told reporters. "We can smell wood and feel the warmth of wood," he said.

Built at a cost of 20.5 billion yen ($188.23 million), the venue features a domed ceiling constructed from Japanese larch with no steel framework and is among the largest of its kind in the world.

The venue can seat 12,000 spectators on long benches placed around the space.

The main Olympic stadium designed by renowned Japanese architect Kengo Kuma also heavily features the use of wood in a nod to traditional techniques.

The gymnastics venue is a temporary site, which is expected to be converted into an exhibition center after the games.

Organizers say they plan to repurpose some of the wood from the site, including the benches, in the exhibition center and other sites including schools.