<p>Sixty years ago, the swimming pool in Podolí began operations.</p>

Prague - The swimming stadium in Prague-Podolí, which began operations 60 years ago on June 24, 1965, with international Spartakiad swimming competitions, is one of the most famous and popular facilities in Prague for both recreational and professional swimmers. It was opened to the public four days later and currently offers an indoor and seasonal fifty-meter pool, an outdoor 33-meter pool, and amenities such as a slide, steam room, sauna, relaxation pool, massages, and a gym. The pool has also hosted numerous sports events, including the European Masters Swimming Championships in 1997. In July 2009, the stadium hosted the European Junior Swimming Championships.

Construction of the pool began in 1959 on the site of the former Podolí cement plant, which started operations in 1870 as the second in the Czech lands. The architect was Richard Ferdinand Podzemný (1907 - 1987). At the time of its opening, visitors to the pool with its legendary wave-shaped roof had access to an indoor fifty-meter pool (only the third in the republic after Žilina and Olomouc) and two outdoor pools with a diving tower. The construction of the complex, which gradually expanded and offered new attractions to its visitors, cost 48 million crowns.

An interesting feature of this unique heritage-protected building is that it uses waste heat from the Czech Television complex for heating. Notably, British Princess Diana also swam in the pool in 1991.

Annual attendance is around one million people. Podolí experienced its record season in 1973 when it was visited by 2,321,000 people.