21. For which building, designed for the London Olympics of 2012, did Zaha Hadid have to water down her original plans due to the costs involved?
From Quiz Hadid It
Answer:
Aquatics Centre
The Aquatics Centre was described as a yacht crossed with a Dubai skyscraper and also a vast turtle waving over-sized flippers, but whatever your opinion of the outside, the inside gained nothing but glowing reports with the way in which Hadid had managed to convey a feeling of wholeness, with the structure feeling like a body rather than something constructed out of segments attracting particular praise.
The centre was originally forecast to cost £75 million ($104 million) when designs were first drawn up in 2004, and Hadid had to make some changes, while keeping the 17,500 spectator capacity, after the cost was presented to parliament.
The new plans were presented in 2006 and construction started in 2008. On completion in July 2011, the centre was called a "masterpiece" by the president of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, but inflation and tax rises meant that the final cost was nowhere near the estimated £75 million ($104 million), instead being closer to £269 million ($376 million).