ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Modern stadiums and arenas are a large financial commitment, making it important to have an economical design. At the same time, the public and owners have high expectations of the finished product. Besides looking good and functioning well from the point of view of sight-lines and acoustics, there must be no question as to its structural integrity and safety under various environmental loading conditions such as wind, snow and earthquake. Since structure is a large part of the cost, accurate knowledge of these environmental loads is important. The microclimate within the facility is also important in so far as it affects the comfort of spectators and the sports activities themselves. Therefore, good knowledge of the internal microclimate is needed including: internal wind flows; solar radiation; shadow patterns; temperature; humidity; and rain infiltration.
