Golden Era

In its pre-war heyday, the sports complex was host to a plethora of national and international sporting events. Beyond sports, other events of national importance that happened in the sports complex include the unification of the Nacionalista Party in 1934, the acceptance of Manuel Quezon and Sergio Osmeña as the respective Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates of the same party for the 1935 elections, to name a few. In the years before the Second World War, the Sports Complex served as the premiere venue for the events of the PAAF, the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP).

In the analysis of Stephan Huebner, the stadium was part of the visual politics of modernity under a colonial power structure, a demonstration of progress through the “blessing of Protestant American modernity.” He asserts that: “…the stadium visually underlined the transformation of the Philippines from a ‘backward’ country into a modern one. Filipino politicians reject colonialism but not Western civilization itself.” (Huebner 2016, 86)

Streamlining towards Independence

As the country was marching towards independence during the Commonwealth era, Arellano, in his design for the buildings of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, turned away from Neoclassicism—which was strongly associated with American colonial rule—and embraced the progressive language of deco streamlining. Streamlining was modernist in inclination, eliminating ornamental excesses to highlight the mechanistically smooth building skin and reverence to the machine. Stylistically and ideologically, the streamlining was an opportunity to distance himself from the classical tradition with the erasure of classical ornaments and simplification of form. In this way, the stylistic departure manifested his rejection of American colonialism with his bold move towards the streamlined aesthetics and rejection of American imperialism.

Battle for Manila and Post-Independence

The 1945 Battle for Liberation witnessed the massive decimation of Manila’s urban built heritage and the irreplaceable treasures of colonial architecture. The complex was part of the final stronghold of the Japanese Imperial Army. It was the site of a decisive