Osaka Expo roof recognized as world's biggest wooden structure

The Grand Ring, the symbol of the six-month-long global event starting April 13, has a roof area measuring over 61,000 square meters, according to the global authority on world records.

Sosuke Fujimoto, the roof's architect, said at the award ceremony he hoped the Expo symbol would send out a message about the importance of forming bonds in a world that has been increasingly divided lately.

The architectural symbol was completed on Feb. 27 to represent the expo philosophy of "Unity in Diversity."

The up to 20-meter-high structure with a circumference of approximately 2 kilometers is made of approximately 27,000 cubic meters of timber, including Japanese cypress and cedar, as well as European red pines, according to the expo organizer.