Coney Island Velodrome

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The Coney Island Velodrome was a mid-sized sports arena located in the historic Coney Island section of Brooklyn in New York City. Designed for use as a bicycle racing venue, the drome featured a 1/8 mile wooden oval track with 45 degree banked corners and had a seating capacity of 10,000 people. Located conveniently next to the BMT rail terminal at Neptune Avenue & West 12th Street, the venue also played host to a myriad of sports, ranging from motorcycle races to boxing matches and football games.

The drome was a popular entertainment venue for both Coney Island vacationers and New York City residents. At the height of popularity for both American bicycle racing and boxing in the 1920s, the Coney Island drome was host to regional and state championship bicycle races, and a roll-call of boxing heroes including Rocky Marciano, Joe Louis, Jersey Joe Walcott, and later Sugar Ray Robinson.

As the Great Depression began to affect the nation's economy, the bicycle racing circuit on the Eastern Seaboard collapsed. In late 1930, the Velodrome was destroyed by fire, but due to its location and varied use, the arena was rebuilt. The last event at the arena was an "Old-Timers" reunion and bicycle race held on September 4, 1950. The Coney Island Velodrome was then torn down and replaced with high-rise housing.

Included in New York City 2012 Olympic bid were plans to rebuild a velodrome elsewhere on Coney Island, but the plans were scrapped when New York lost the bid to London in 2005.