RiverBox^® artificial rivers

A demountable river

Hydrostadium is behind an R&D programme concerned with the development of a new approach to artificial rivers, RiverBox^®.

RiverBox^® is a river that is built out of transportable modules that are placed on scaffolding, all of which is placed in a leaktight basin. This technique allows the slope of the RiverBox^® to be altered from one installation to another. Consequently, the rafting difficulties are adjustable and the river can be switched from a whitewater discovery course into a venue fit for the Olympics.

RiverBox^® comprises three technical features :

• A 250 m course can be installed in an area that is smaller than a football pitch,
• The volume of water required is equivalent to three times that of an Olympic swimming pool,
• The amount of energy to be provided by the pumping station is similar to that required by a chair lift.

Use of existing infrastructure

To take advantage of the following points, RiverBox^® can be used with existing infrastructure (for example: football stadium, auditorium) :

• Large reception capacity,
• Management of spectator safety,
• High-quality venue: changing rooms, toilets, retail space, etc.
• Multimedia infrastructure: press area, giant screen, public address system, lighting, etc.
• No additional investment.

Sustainable development of whitewater stadiums

There was no reconversion project for the last whitewater stadiums built for the Olympic Games. RiverBox^® would allow the site to be fully cleared after the Games, resulting in no heavy infrastructure to be managed or maintained.

RiverBox^® can be moved as and when events are held, regardless of the location, such as :

• Sport competitions,
• Proactive events aimed at members of the public who are unfamiliar with these sports.

Bringing whitewater events closer to the main Olympic site

Traditional whitewater stadiums occupy large areas of land which are situated, ideally, close to a body of water. As a result, the site chosen is often very far away from other events. RiverBox^® enables the host country to bring whitewater competitions closer to spectators who travel to the venue to see other sports.