Initially baptized as Gran Stadium de La Habana or Estadio del Cerro, the colossus opened its doors on October 26, 1946 for the game between the capital’s Alacranes del Almendares team and the southern team Elefantes de Cienfuegos, within the framework of the now defunct Cuban Professional Baseball League.

More than 30 000 fans gathered that day, breaking all attendance records for a sporting event in the history of Cuba and since then it has become the island’s baseball cathedral.

Its grounds have witnessed many unforgettable moments such as the fight of the famous American boxer Joe Luis, the game in which the Cuban Sugar Kings won the so-called Little World Series or the visits of the Major League teams from Baltimore and Tampa.

Events that marked the sports, political, social and cultural life of Cuba took place there, such as the one in 1956 when university students led by José Antonio Echeverría took to the field with signs protesting against the government of dictator Fulgencio Batista.

With a capacity for 55,000 people since its expansion in 1971 with the construction of its sun bleachers, this majestic facility is home to the mythical Industriales, since the beginning of the National Series in 1962.

The only one in Cuba that is capable of occupying almost half of its seats with partial games of opposing teams, because the capital is a very cosmopolitan city, the Latino became the place where baseball players graduate and where everyone wants to go to show off their tools.

The Coloso del Cerro, undoubtedly, is an indissoluble part of Cuban culture, the best values of Cubanism have taken root in its grounds and it enjoys an incalculable and exceptional patrimonial value.

For all these reasons, the fans hope that before reaching its 80th anniversary, this Havana stadium can also be honored with such a distinction, to further guarantee the protection and safeguarding of the national sport.

mh/abo/rgh/blc