The Stade Départemental Yves-du-Manoir in Colombes, Hauts-de-Seine, hosted the 1924 Summer Olympics, including the opening ceremony and the athletics events. Now much less used, it is nevertheless the only venue in France to host the second Games in its history, for those of Paris 2024, this time with field field hockey at its heart.
Although the stadium has been used for sports since 1883, it was originally a racecourse belonging to the Société des courses de Colombes, which was transformed into a stadium in 1907. Poorly located in relation to others such as the Parc des Princes and the Pershing stadium, Yves-du-Manoir struggled to attract tenants, but was designated as the main Olympic stadium for 1924, and benefited from funds to expand, then designed byarchitect Louis Faure-Dujarric.
The new stadium was named in 1928 after Yves du Manoir, a Racing XV rugby player and national team hopeful who had just died on a plane. Thanks to its athletics track, it hosted numerous French and international championships until the 2000s, while the central pitch saw the final of the 1938 Football World Cup and many international rugby matches.
With the rebuilding of the Parc des Princes in 1972 and the construction of the Stade de France in 1998, the Colombes stadium fell into disrepair, and most of its historic stands were razed. For the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the stadium underwent a major renovation in preparation for the field field hockey events, and is now home to the French Hockey Federation and its national training center, with two synthetic pitches. There are also seven new pitches for soccer and rugby union.
To get to the stadium, you can take the Transilien line J and get off at Le Stade station in Colombes, from Saint-Lazare, about ten minutes on foot.
Location
Yves-du-Manoir Stadium
Rue François Faber
92700 Colombes
