As well as accommodation and workshops, the Village will provide catering, transportation, medical and training facilities for those attending the Games.

More than 500 volunteers will be on hand to provide room service, health care and first aid 24 hours a day to the athletes, who are aged between 15 and 18 and will compete across 28 sports.

The facility will feature a "World Culture Village", which will showcase each of the 204 National Olympic Committees attending the Games, with interactive skills workshops available that can inspire the young athletes to become future ambassadors of Olympism.

Elsewhere, the dining hall will offer four main cuisines of Asian, Mediterranean, European and Chinese food, along with Nanjing's famous local dishes.

The Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games Village has been designed to be both environmentally-friendly and sustainable ©Nanjing 2014


There will also be a digital centre so residents can connect with their families and fans back home and play a part in the Youth Olympic Games selfie campaign, while a "Learn and Share" zone will allow athletes to chat face-to-face with Olympians to learn more about having a successful athletic career and avoiding dangers, such as doping and illegal gambling.

The Village has been designed to be both environmentally-friendly and sustainable, with features such as an optical lighting system that uses no electricity, but instead collects sunlight and funnels it through pipes to light areas of the building to reduce carbon emissions.

In addition, the water supply system combines cooling, heating and power to control temperature and contribute to the goal of energy conservation.

Nanjing 2014 hopes the Village will be a place "where the athletes can relax, have fun and make friends when not engaged in competition".

The Youth Olympic Games will take place from August 16 to 28.

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