Rome 1960: Olympic venues overview
To reduce costs and showcase the city’s rich cultural heritage, the Olympic Games Rome 1960 were staged across 26 competition venues, a large number of which were existing venues. Of those 26 venues, 21 continue to be used today for high-performance and recreational sport, and some are also popular tourist attractions.
Rome’s ancient history was an integral part of the Games of the XVII Olympiad. The Caracalla Baths, inaugurated in 217 AD, were just one ancient Roman venue to be used, providing a spectacular backdrop for the 1960 gymnastics competitions. Regarded as the most impressive such precinct of its age, the venue comprised hot and cold swimming baths, covered and uncovered gymnasiums, and rooms for gymnastics, wrestling and relaxation. Despite the passage of time, the ground floor of the precinct and a large part of its impressive walls remain intact.
Prior to the 1960 Games, the site hosted the Gran Premio di Roma car race between 1947 and 1951, and in the years since it has been the setting for operas, concerts and dance festivals. It also attracts large numbers of tourists all year round.
The Stadio Olimpico, officially opened in 1953 after its construction was interrupted by the Second World War, was one of the main venues of the Olympic Games Rome 1960 and hosted the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, the track and field competitions, and some of the equestrian events. Part of the Foro Italico complex in the north of the city, it has been the home stadium of Serie A football clubs AS Roma and SS Lazio since it opened, and the Italian national rugby team since 2012.
The stadium was extensively refurbished for the 1990 FIFA World Cup, when its capacity was increased to nearly 83,000. It underwent further renovation in 2007 to make it a UEFA category-five stadium eligible to host Champions League finals, which it did in 2009. Since the Olympic Games, it has been a venue for the European and World Athletics Championships, the athletics Diamond League, UEFA European Championship matches and Coppa Italia finals, among other major sporting events. Owned by the Italian National Olympic Committee and now boasting a capacity of just over 70,000, it also stages major pop concerts – the Rolling Stones, U2 and REM are just some of the world-famous acts to have played there – classical music concerts and opera, and other mass events.
The Stadio dei Marmi hosted the elimination rounds of the hockey tournament at Rome 1960 and was also used by athletes to warm up for track and field events at the adjoining Stadio Olimpico. Opened in 1936, the 9,500-capacity stadium is ringed by 59 faux Greco-Roman marble statues, each depicting different sports. It staged the opening ceremony of the 2009 FINA World Aquatics Championships and in 2016 became the venue for the Global Champions Tour of Rome, an equestrian event held every September.
Three existing locations were used for the equestrian competitions at the Olympic Games Rome 1960: the Piazza di Siena (dressage, eventing jumping and individual jumping), Pratoni del Vivaro (eventing) and Passo Corese (the equestrian round of the modern pentathlon competition).
The 16th-century Piazza di Siena, situated in the Villa Borghese gardens, staged its first equestrian events in 1922 and has hosted many more since then. Attracting the leading riders on the international circuit, the Piazza di Siena International Horse Show is one of the top events on the equestrian calendar and was an FEI Jumping Nations Cup Division 1 venue between 2013 and 2017. Pratoni del Vivaro, situated 35 kilometres outside Rome, continues to host various equestrian events and provided the setting for the 2007 European Eventing Championships.
Finally, the shooting competitions at the Olympic Games Rome 1960 took place at three different venues, two of them existing: the Umberto Shooting Range in Viale Lazio (rapid fire pistol, pistol, rifle three positions and rifle prone) and the Clay Pigeon Lazio Club (trap). The former, Italy’s national range since 1883 and the home of the club TSN Roma, has hosted a number of world championships, most recently in 1995. For its part, the Lazio club is no longer in use.