Beijing Olympics 'Water Cube' designer John Pauline will head new RMJM Sport

Architect RMJM has announced the formation of a new sports architecture division with the appointment of a key design consultant of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Head of the new RMJM Sport will be John Pauline, one of the lead designers on the 鈥淲ater Cube鈥 aquatics centre built for the 2008 Olympics and a consultant on four Olympic Games. He was until recently acting as an adviser on the handball venue for the 2012 Olympics.


Water Cube
John Pauline and colleagues' Water Cube design for the 2008 Olympics

RMJM designed the media centre for the 2008 Olympics and is the lead designer on one of the teams bidding for the 2014 Commonwealth Games athletes' village in Glasgow.

Pauline, who will be based in the architect's Hong Kong office, has already been making his presence felt at RMJM, delivering a presentation to the organising committee for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi in his first week in the job.

Peter Morrison, chief executive of RMJM, said: 鈥淲e have built a strong reputation in designing sporting venues and we are now looking to take this to the next level by establishing RMJM Sport, led by John, who is a leading authority in this area. His vast experience and specialist knowledge, not only in designing sporting venues but also in coordinating multiple stakeholders and consultants, will bring added value to our clients.鈥

The introduction of a sports division is part of a global restructure being undertaken at RMJM, a process that has involved cutting 60 jobs across its 1,000-strong workforce.