Built on reclaimed industrial land in Stratford, east London, the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is the lasting legacy of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It is one of the largest new urban parks created in Europe in more than a century. The site lies in the Lower Lea Valley, an area of old factories, railway yards and contaminated ground that was cleared and decontaminated from 2007. The River Lea and its channels were cleaned up and woven into the new landscape. During the Games of 2012 it was known simply as the Olympic Park. It was renamed afterwards to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, and reopened to the public in stages through 2013 and 2014. At its centre stands the main stadium, now the London Stadium and home to West Ham United, where the opening ceremony was staged. Around it are the Aquatics Centre, the velodrome, the Copper Box arena and other venues used for both elite and community sport. Rising above the park is the ArcelorMittal Orbit, a looping red tower that is Britain's largest piece of public art, with a viewing platform and a long slide spiralling down its frame. The grounds combine wide lawns, riverside walks, wildflower meadows, play areas and waterways, designed to support wildlife as well as visitors. The athletes' village was converted into housing, forming the basis of a new neighbourhood. The park sits at the heart of one of the most ambitious regeneration projects in London, drawing in homes, jobs, schools and cultural institutions, with several universities and galleries establishing new bases on and around the site. Exceptionally well connected by rail, underground and the Elizabeth line through Stratford, the park is open year-round as a free public space, used for everyday recreation as much as for the sporting events that still fill its venues.

Type: Outdoors

Address: London, United Kingdom, E20 2ST

Website: https://www.queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk

Opening Date: 27/07/2013