On Wednesday, reporters will have a first chance to get inside the completed Bird’s Nest National Stadium, where some dreams will come true but many more will be dashed at the Olympics.

It’s been two years since I set foot in the stadium, which was then just a concrete bowl surrounding a muddy oval all shrouded in a twisting, dull, steel mesh.

Despite being so unique, it could be one of the last of a type.

Many people think that the era of the iconic Olympic stadium may soon be over.

Few bidding cities are able to justify building an arena capable of housing close on 100,000 spectators (91,000 in Beijing’s case) .

There is no doubt that the Bird’s Nest is an iconic structure and I am quite excited to get a first glimpse of it in its finished state.

At least, after the security checks being carried out on Monday (picture by a Reuters stringer), we know it should be safe.