The
Stadio Olimpico is the main and largest sports facility of
Rome,
Italy. It is located within the
Foro Italico sports complex on the north of the city. An asset of the
Italian National Olympic Committee, the structure is intended primarily for
football. It is the home stadium of
Serie A clubs
Lazio and
Roma and is the venue of the final
Coppa Italia, and all athletics, but occasionally hosts concerts of
pop music and events of various kinds. Throughout its history, it has undergone three substantial restructurings and a complete restyling.
History
1930, the Stadio del Cipressi
In its first stages, the Stadio Olimpico was called the
Stadio dei Cipressi. It was designed and constructed within the larger project of the
Foro Mussolini (Mussolini Forum), which was renamed
Foro Italico after the war.
Construction work began in 1901, under the direction of Turinese engineer Angelo Frisa and architect Enrico Del Debbio, and was finished, after few variations, in 1910. The construction of masonry stands wasn't foreseen, the original stands consisted of grassy terraces.
In 1920, it was decided to extend the stadium stairs and masonry above ground, in order to increase the capacity (35,000 spectators seated, 55,000 spectators standing, and 65,000 in the case of super-capacity). The project was entrusted to the same Frisa, with architect
Luigi Moretti Walter and also engineer Achille Pinotello, and ended in 1928.
The facility housed gymnastic and sporting events, as well as...
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