History
The stadium was built in 1948, as part of the project to build a group of sports facilities known as Ciudad Olímpica, in the Zone 5 of the Guatemalan Capital. Originally named Estadio Olímpico – erroneously, since it has never hosted an olympic competition –, it is primarily constructed of reinforced concrete, which is why sometimes it is colloquially referred to as Coloso de Concreto. It was inaugurated on February 23, 1950, to host the VI Central American and Caribbean Games, at which local runner Doroteo (Mateo) Flores won the half marathon event, and on 26 February, the Guatemala national football team played against Colombia, winning the match 2-1, thus inaugurating the football events at the stadium.
After Mateo Flores' triumph in the 1952 Boston Marathon, the Guatemalan government renamed the stadium after him, in recognition to his local and international achievements. Since then, the stadium has also been colloquially called El Mateo.
On 18 January 1959 the stadium hosted a friendly football match between CSD Comunicaciones and Santos FC, the latter having Pelé as part of its squad. Santos took a 2-0 lead with goals by Pelé and Pepe, and nine minutes before the match ended, Francisco "Pinula" Contreras scored the 2-1. On 20 August 1960 Spanish giants Real Madrid visited Guatemala and played an exhibition match against Comunicaciones, winning 5-0.
In 1973 the stadium hosted the first Central American Games (Juegos Deportivos Centroamericanos), and has since been the venue for other two editions, in 1986 and 2001.
In July 1996, the sand track was upgraded to a tartan track, and the first time the new surface was used, local athlete Berner Rodas set a new national record at the 1500 metres event.
Throughout the years, the stadium has also been the usual finishing point of the annual Vuelta a Guatemala, Central America's largest single road cycling competition.
Numerous concerts have been hosted at the stadium, notably heavy metal band Metallica's performance in 2010.
Read more about this topic: Estadio Mateo Flores
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