The field—all 5,584 squares resting in black plastic modules and weighing in at 1,100 pounds apiece—need to move with precision from the construction site in northern Beijing to the National "Bird's Nest" Stadium.
Move day will be Aug. 9 after the opening ceremonies.
The modules are held together by the grass itself. As the root zone of the Kentucky blue grass grows strong, it knits together the top soil so workers can remove the plastic collars that divide each square. Forklifts lift each module and place them on plastic connectors that keep each module from shifting during installation.
This already has worked once—and at record time. On May 12 the Chinese did a practice move in 24 hours—half the time it took to move the turf in Athens for the 2004 Summer Olympics.
The turf performed perfectly.
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