After the completion of the sports centre delivered in 2010, the construction of a new archery facility and an outdoor shooting range was the second phase of the operation to renovate and modernise the French National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance (INSEP). The archery building combines the programmatic demands of a high level sport with a simple, readily understandable organisational principle.
The building’s shape calls to mind a pavilion. It is initially defined by its horizontal planes: a floor and a roof. This structure is provided by a series of slender posts made of metal, a material that allows for an elegant design emphasising the lightness of the roof. This system also allows for the addition of 4-metre cantilevered eaves free of structural support. A wooden façade simultaneously enriches and softens the aesthetic. To the south, the vertical cladding is punctuated by gaps that offer varyingly protected views of the external areas. To the north, a curtain wall integrates the accesses and shooting galleries.
The archery centre is divided into three zones:
In the northern part, a 70-metre (official Olympic length) gallery has three shooting lanes. Lane No. 1, from the interior to the exterior of the building, enables archers to shoot from an area heated and sheltered all year round without being distracted by visual obstacles marking the frontier between the inside and the outside. Lane 2 enables them to shoot from the outside under cover, while Lane 3 provides them with the opportunity to shoot outdoors.
In the South-West part of the building, an 18-metre indoor shooting gallery (the official distance for indoor events) has also been built, as has a 90-metre outdoor gallery.
Lastly, shared areas have been set up in the South-East part of the building, including the coaches’ office, changing rooms, a physio room, a weights room, an armoury, and a maintenance room.
Run-off water is collected via a trough, which contributes to the building’s environmental quality. In order to integrate the building into the wooded landscape of the Bois de Vincennes, the building is partially buried
(-80cm). Meanwhile, the adjoining external spaces and the roof are generously planted.
