Magadalena Mixhuca Sports Complex
The largest facility of its kind in Mexico, the Magdalena Mixhuca Sports Complex has grown in size since the Olympic Games Mexico 1968 and is an important part of the city’s sporting and cultural scene.
Covering an area of 192 hectares, it comprises four Olympic venues: the Fernando Montes de Oca Olympic Fencing Hall (fencing), the Juan Escutia Sports Palace (basketball), the Jesús Martínez Palillo Athletics Stadium (field hockey) and the Agustín Melgar Olympic Velodrome (cycling). Except for the Athletics Stadium, which was constructed in 1964, all the venues were purpose built for the Games.
Now known as the Palacio de Deportes, the Juan Escutia Sports Palace is a major basketball, volleyball and entertainment venue. It hosted the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship and matches in the Men’s World Volleyball League before the competition came to an end in 2018.
Renovated in 2014, the Jesús Martínez Palillo Athletics Stadium was the venue for the Pan American Sports Festival that same year and was one of the facilities used for the UIPM 2018 Pentathlon World Championships. A multi-purpose stadium, it is currently home to three of Mexico City’s American Football teams.
After suffering from a lack of maintenance for several years, the Fernando Montes de Oca Olympic Fencing Hall was extensively renovated prior to the 50th anniversary of the Games in 2018. As well as fencing and artistic gymnastics facilities, the refurbished multi-purpose hall comprises basketball, volleyball and handball courts for use by clubs and the local community.
The open-air velodrome was renovated in the mid-1990s and refurbished once more in 2016, when an artificial pitch was laid for the use of local football clubs. One of the fastest tracks in the world at the time, it saw no fewer than 30 world records set before its wooden track was replaced by a concrete one in 1997. Visited by more than 20,000 people a week, the track is now mainly used
The Magdalena Mixhuca Sports Complex remains a venue for sport in all its forms and for all levels, from beginners to high performance. It is also home to the Hermanos Rodríguez racetrack, which was built in 1959 and has hosted the Mexican Grand Prix since its return to the Formula 1 calendar in 2015. Situated inside Turns 1, 2 and 3 of the racetrack is Mexico City’s newest baseball venue, the Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium, which opened in 2019 and is the home of the Diablos Rojos team.