In the old stadium, Colón won its first game in the National Major Baseball League with a resounding 25-3 victory over Coclé, although the title ultimately remained in the capital. Today, the new stadium will be inaugurated with the match between Chiriquí and Colón, marking the beginning of the National Major Baseball League. If we review history, it wasn't until 1951 that a Chiriquí team defeated the Colón team 2-1, with the legendary Chico Sellels on the mound and Kenny Sarracín as the catcher. In 1948, in David, Héctor López hit three home runs against the Chiriquí team.
The history also intertwines with the life of Roberto Mariano Bula, a merchant and community leader who promoted the construction of the stadium between 1946 and 1947, advocated for the creation of Colegio Abel Bravó, and wrote the lyrics to the Colón anthem, a legacy that still inspires today. On that same diamond, Humberto Robinson and Héctor López shone, the first two Panamanians to reach the Major Leagues, symbols of a baseball with deep roots in the province. Colón also prides itself on giving the country two Olympic medalists: Lloyd La Beach, with two bronzes in 1948, and Irving Saladino, with gold in 2008; as well as 15 Major Leaguers and 16 world boxing champions like Teófilo “Panamá” Al Brown, Ismael Laguna, Ernesto Marcel, Pelechín Caballero, Felino Jones, Rafael Pedroza, and Luis Ibarra, among others. Basketball figures also stood out, such as “El Mago” Rivas, Atwey Massaiah, Cecilio Strakert, Tito Ardines, and Nando Tom; world-class wrestlers like Saúl Leslie and Julio Kenion; the swimmer César Barría, the boxer Ana Pascál, and the weightlifter José Díaz. Football also has its place with the Dely Valdés brothers (Julio, Armando, and Jorge), Eric Davis, Joel Bárcenas, and Amir Murillo, as well as emblematic teams like Árabe Unido.
The old municipal stadium, later baptized as Roberto Mariano Bula, was a testament to the passion of a people that lived and breathed baseball. Today, in the same place, a new Roberto Mariano Bula stadium rises, inheriting the glories of the past and opening a modern chapter in the region's sporting history. Its reopening returns baseball to its home in Colón and offers a modern space for new generations to write their own feats. President Mulino said at the beginning of his term: “Colón will have its stadium”. With an investment of $33.5 million, the project is part of a set of initiatives driven by President José Raúl Mulino, along with hospitals, schools, health centers, and roads. Located in the Barrio Sur district, the stadium has a capacity for 5,000 people, dormitories, a meeting room, parking, a running track, and Major League specifications. And today, that stadium is a reality. In Colón, a land of athletes and unforgettable memories, a wooden stadium was built in 1946, which was transformed into concrete just a year later, in 1947, becoming the stage for great sporting feats. Between 1944 and 1950, the Colón team defeated the Chiriquí team seven times, twice with Humberto Robinson. It thus becomes a top-tier venue that reinforces its role as a community meeting point and a symbol of sporting identity. It is the most significant sports project for the people of Colón on their 174th anniversary. It is a recognition of a people that loves sports and has known how to produce champions in multiple disciplines. In athletics, figures such as Florencio Aguilar, Alfonso Piters, Héctor Daley, Fernando Ramsey, and Sam LaBeach, Lloyd's brother, stood out. The province has also been the cradle of legendary athletes like Reginald Bradford and Lobo Barnett, as well as coaches like Bobby Rodríguez and Félix Fruto, reaffirming its status as a region of excellence in sports. In baseball, players such as Ossie Chavarría, Ramón Webster, Vibert Clarke, Chico Salmón, Bobby Prescott, Ben Oglivie, Juan Bartón, Vicente Correa, Reyes Escalona, Domingo Santizo, Franklin Niles, Harold Gordon, Oscar Hall, Archie Brathwaite, Allan Lewis, Urbano Camarena, Billy Prout, Mauricio Ching, Hipólito Ortiz, Manuel Sanguillén, Renny Stennett, Alex Zapata, Alfonso Brown, and Dionisio Rice, among others, excelled. The new Roberto Mariano Bula is not just an infrastructure project.
