Sporting chance to survive Covid-19: Inside R1bn Soccer City hospital transformation

China kicked off a trend of converting iconic sporting venues into makeshift hospitals, starting in Wuhan with the Hongsham Gymnasium where the Covid-19 virus emerged. From the UK to Canada, other countries have followed suit, adding hotels and other buildings to their hospital capacity in preparation for vast numbers of desperately ill people needing help on ventilators and other specialist equipment. Johannesburg's calabash-style Soccer City is set to undergo a similar conversion. In this podcast with BizNews editor-in-chief Alec Hogg, the architects who conceptualised the iconic stadium discuss the details of how they will transform their symbolic architectural masterpiece into a space where 1,500 people will be treated. Architect Bob van Bebber and director Jean Grobler, of the award-winning firm Boogertman Urban Edge & Partners, were part of a team that included medical experts who, as The Star reports, sketched out the details over 72-hours via the Zoom conference app. - Jackie Cameron