Built in 1932 as part of the larger sports project conceived by Tony Garnier twenty years earlier, the swimming pool in the Gerland district in Lyon underwent a major renovation and modernization, making it usable again while respecting its original lines and materials.

The aim of the project was to restore the pool to its former glory, so that it fits harmoniously into the context of the Stade de Gerland. The redevelopment is accompanied by heritage restoration work on the diving board steps and foundations.

The entire site is based on the fundamentals imagined by Tony Garnier, and in particular on the monumental entrance to the Gerland stadium: the Allée des Lions. The project is organised around the enhancement of this entrance, the pool, the bleachers and the diving board of the existing swimming pool.

Historical images: above, from left, general plan of the project by Tony Garnier, 1919;
the swimming pool in 1932 and 1964 (all images: Municipal Archives of Lyon).
Below, the swimming pool in 2021, before the renovation ((image GL Events).

To achieve this, the project is made up of three main volumes linked by intermediate blocks to provide a graduated floor plan. The highest volume, at 2 storeys above ground floor level, is located on Allée des Lions and acts as a backdrop on the pool side to the historic diving board, which has become a sculpture. The two lower volumes frame the preserved and restored bleachers. 

The new buildings form a U-shaped setting around the existing pool, encircling the outdoor pool area delimited by the bleachers. Their design is based on the 7.50 m grid used by Tony Garnier for all the projects on the site.

This grid splits and shifts to avoid the gravel concrete foundations of the former athletes’ quarters, which have been preserved as relics of twentieth-century history.

Behind the bleachers are new sports facilities: the training area for professional rugby players to the east and an indoor swimming pool to the west.

To the south of the swimming pool, marked by the diving board that has been preserved and restored to its former glory, a building aligned with the Allée des Lions connects the two wings to house the offices. 

(images Vladimir de Mollerat du Jeu)

The role of LOU Rugby in the renovation of the swimming pool in Lyon

This project is a continuation of work started in 2011, when the City of Lyon, as owner, asked LOU Rugby to move to the Stade de Gerland. Consulting architects from the City of Lyon, DRAC, ABF and LOU Rugby began working together to evaluate the future of the stadium, which is included in the supplementary inventory of historical monuments.

LOU Rugby was entrusted with the management of the site, with the obligation to invest in transformation and restoration work, as well as the authorization to build an office complex: Les Jardins du LOU, a hotel, a health centre and a reception centre.

The LOU entrusted the stadium transformation project to Albert Constantin and his collaborators. Claire Bertrand and Pierre-Benoît Thévenon were in charge of managing this project. Didier Repellin and the heritage architects RL&A joined the team to carry out an initial heritage study and to support the restoration of the monument.

The transformed stadium was delivered in August 2017, after a four-month lightning operation during the off-season.

In June 2019, Claire Bertrand and Pierre-Benoît Thevenon set up their own firm, 4_32 architecte, and LOU Rugby gave them an initial assignment to oversee the delivery of the project.

In autumn 2019, the LOU launched the Lyon swimming pool renovation project and entrusted it to 4_32 architecte. This will be their first project.

(images Vladimir de Mollerat du Jeu)