Olympic House

Key criteria

The selection criteria were as follows:

• Approach to the problem: 30% of the final grading;
• References: 50% of the final grading;
• Organisation: 20% of the final grading.

Also, the International Olympic Committee underlined several points which had to be taken into consideration (non-exhaustive list):

• Symbolism: The IOC headquarters is a place full of history and symbolism. Founded in 1894 and established in Lausanne in 1915, the IOC is an organisation that is over 100 years old, leading an Olympic Movement whose scope has grown incessantly in recent decades. Even though its vocation is not to host the general public, quite often sports coaches and Olympic fans stop outside the IOC headquarters. The headquarters had therefore to reflect Olympic values without being ostentatious, and strike a balance between history and modernity;
• Cooperation and diversity: The headquarters had to be a welcoming place that would encourage internal and external cooperation and respect each person’s profile and cultural diversity;
• Flexibility: The new building had to be designed to be flexible and adjustable so that it could be adapted as technologies and working methods evolve;
• Sustainable development: The headquarters needed to be designed with sustainable development in mind. They had to implement all development–related best practices, particularly with respect to the materials used and the minimisation of the building’s energy consumption, so as to offer staff a working environment that would promote health and safety at work and take into account various levels of mobility.