Tournament Park is a park and athletics venue in Pasadena, California, currently maintained by the California Institute of Technology. It was simply known as the "town lot" before being renamed Tournament Park in 1900. Tournament Park gets its name from the Tournament of Roses, and it served as a venue in the early 20th century for events associated with the Tournament, such as chariot races, ostrich races, and even a race between a camel and an elephant. It is best known for being the site of the first Rose Bowl Game in 1902, and the second to eighth Rose Bowl Games from 1916 to 1922 before the Rose Bowl opened in 1923. Its capacity at the time was 43,000 people, many of which were in temporary wooden bleachers that the city deemed unsafe, thus necessitating the construction of the Rose Bowl. Besides hosting Tournament of Roses events, the venue also hosted the Southern California Horse Show Association's annual horse show in the early 20th century. Tournament Park hosted a handful of USC football games in the 1910s and 1920s prior to the construction of Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumFollowing the departure of the Rose Bowl Game, the facility's capacity was reduced substantially. Tournament Park, along with the Rose Bowl, served as the venue for Caltech's football team until the school dropped football. The stadium, now known as South Athletic Field, is bounded by the Fox-Stanton Track (named after former Caltech football coach Fox Stanton), and continues to serve as Caltech's track and field venue. The surrounding park, which continues under the Tournament Park moniker, contains a playground and picnic facility.
