The Olympic Velodrome designed by Hopkins Architects, one of the four permanent venues on the Olympic Park and designed for the indoor track cycling events at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games won the Architects’ Journal Building of the Year award. The facility was unilaterally agreed upon by judges for the prize due to its “near perfect synthesis of form and function”, as described by jury member Patrik Schumacher of Zaha Hadid Architects.

The jury, which also comprised Frank Duffy (DEGW) and Christine Murray (AJ editor), were particularly impressed by the beauty of the cedar cladding, the ingenious lightweight double cable-net roof, the dominance of natural light and the Velodrome’s beauty in section.

Last year, Hopkins’ Kroon Hall at Yale University received the Building of the Year award.

Meanwhile, this year’s Contribution to the Profession winner Sir Michael Hopkins CBE received the popular vote from among his peers for his significant contribution to UK architecture since he founded the Hopkins practice in 1976. During his career, he has been awarded a CBE and Knighted for Services to Architecture, and also won the RIBA Gold Medal for Architecture in 1994 (with partner Patricia Hopkins).

The Hopkins practice has been at the centre of British architecture since the practice was established, and has a track record for delivering acclaimed, award winning buildings of the highest architectural standards.