Osaka Expo Ring Roof Judged World's Largest Wooden Structure

   Osaka, March 4 (Jiji Press)--The iconic ring-shaped roof at the venue of the World Exposition in Osaka, western Japan, was recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's largest wooden structure Tuesday.
   An award ceremony was held at the venue, Yumeshima, an artificial island, before the Expo begins on April 13. The 60,000-square-meter roof, called the Grand Ring, has the largest building area on record for a wooden structure, according to Guinness World Records.
   "I hope that (the Grand Ring) will give a powerful message at the Expo that these diverse worlds can be connected," said architect Sosuke Fujimoto, who designed the venue.
   The roof has a circumference of about 2 kilometers, a height of up to 20 meters and an outer diameter of 675 meters. It encloses pavilions of participating countries, embodying the venue design philosophy of "unity in diversity."
   The construction cost reached 34.4 billion yen. The wooden structure was completed in February and delivered to the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition, which runs the upcoming event.

(2025/03/04-15:07)

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