Olympics Sculpture to Become World's Largest Tunnel Slide

548' of sliding at speeds of up to 15 mph—Thanks, Anish Kapoor.

July 30, 2015, 1:00pm

Image: LLDC

Anish Kapoor and Cecil Balmond's 376' tall love-it-or-hate-it sculpture, ArcelorMittal Orbit, originally built for the London 2012 Olympics in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, will be turned into a huge slide. Yesterday, it was given the go-ahead by the Legacy Corporation Board, following the successful submission of a planning application.

What this means is that the UK's tallest sculpture will become the world's tallest and longest tunnel slide. The slide will run from the platform near the top of the twisting, flowing red steel form and, according to the images, curve through and around Kapoor and Balmond's divisive design. People enjoying the slide will travel at speeds of up to 15 mph along 12 twists and turns through a 584' long tunnel. The descent from the top will last around 40 seconds.

When originally designing the piece, Kapoor said he wanted to give the sensation of "something that was continually in movement… You need to journey round the object, and through it. Like a Tower of Babel, it requires real participation from the public." Turning the sculpture into a slide, then, is in keeping with its original theme.

The slide is hoping to be installed by spring 2016 and will cost riders around £5.00 ($8.00).