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Stuff from Johannesburg

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The FNB Stadium: Resisting Seismic Activity

From a technical perspective, the “Calabash” is a marvel of modern engineering. Because the stadium sits on the edge of the mining belt, the foundations had to be incredibly robust to account for potential seismic activity from old mine workings. The roof is a cantilevered steel structure that covers almost all the seats but leaves the pitch open to the Highveld sun, designed to keep the noise of the crowd—and the legendary vuvuzelas—echoing inside the bowl to create an intimidating atmosphere for visiting teams. The upper tier is sloped at a sharp angle to ensure that even the fans in the “nosebleed” sections have a clear, unobstructed view of the action.