Gallery: The World's Most Beautiful Hockey Rink Gets a Big Upgrade

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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    01

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    Eero Saarinen's Ingalls Rink, affectionately called the Yale Whale, recently underwent a renovation. The architects who led the delicate initiative just won a prestigious restoration award for their work.
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    Architectural Record, courtesy of Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    02

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    Saarinen completed the hockey rink building in 1958. A critique in the December 1958 issue of Architectural Forum called it “one of the most surprising new buildings in the world."
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    Architectural Record, courtesy of Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
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    1IngallsRink-ArchRecord-October1958-Page-5

    Personality was the point. When it was built, Ingalls Rink was remote from the rest of campus. It needed to attract students and visitors to be successful.
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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    04

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    The architects who did the restoration—Kevin Roche and his partner, John Dinkeloo—worked under Saarinen at the time he designed the Yale Whale.
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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    05

    Yale-Rink1-012010

    Like any building that's stood for 50 years, the stadium needed upgrades like new lighting and repairs to cracks in the concrete structure.
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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    06

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    It also needed to adapt to reflect collegiate sports today. In the 1950s, it was more like club sports. Today, it's a competitive business—one that now includes women's teams.
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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    07

    1Yale-Ext1-012010

    To accommodate state-of-the-art training facilities and coaches' offices, KRJD built a swooping entrance that leads to an underground expansion.
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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    08

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    Here, the walkway skirts the outside of one of the weight-lifting areas.
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    Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC
    09

    Yale-Int2-012010

    The old coaches' offices were a quarter-mile away from Ingalls. The new offices are in the building, as are brand new locker rooms.
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