Frontó Colom

The Frontó Colom (now an indoor sports centre) was the venue for some of the Basque pelota events at the Barcelona’92 Olympic Games. Both the women’s and men’s events of this discipline were held there. As a demonstration sport, Basque pelota had been played at the Olympic Games in Paris in 1900 and 1924, in Mexico in 1968, and finally in Barcelona in 1992. Located at the bottom of La Rambla, at the beginning of the stretch known as Rambla de Santa Mònica, the Frontó Colom building dates from 1882. It was a very active sports centre until 1975, when it fell into disuse.

Later, and taking advantage of the XXVth Olympiad to drive forward Barcelona’s urban renewal, the facility was recovered. It was particularly important for a part of the city as emblematic as Ciutat Vella (the Old Town) to have a sports facility. The architects Anna Soler and Sílvia Farriol were responsible for the remodelling works. Just two of the original walls were kept (at the side and front), and the central space was designed so that it could be converted into a multi-purpose court after the Olympic Games. Since then, it has become a municipal sports centre. Although it is small, it has a variety of services, including a gym, a two lane pool and many monitor-led activities. It is publicly owned and privately managed.