Club Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata
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| Full name | Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) |
El Lobo (The Wolf) Los Triperos (The gut-handlers) |
| Founded | 3 June 1887 |
| Ground |
Estadio Juan Carmelo Zerillo, La Plata, Argentina |
| Capacity | 21,500 |
| President | Gabriel Pellegrino |
| Manager | Mariano Soso |
| League | Primera División |
| 2016 | 5° of Zona 1 |
| Website | Club home page |
Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkluβ ðe ximˈnasja i ezˈɣɾima la ˈplata] (English: La Plata Gymnastics and Fencing Club), also known simply as Gimnasia or the acronym GELP, is a professional Argentine sports club based in the city of La Plata, Buenos Aires Province. Founded in 1887 as "Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima", the club is mostly known for its football team, which currently plays in the Primera División, the first division of the Argentine football league system.
Apart from football, GELP also hosts other activities such as athletics, basketball, fencing, futsal, gymnastics, field hockey, martial arts, tennis, roller skating and volleyball.
The "Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata" was founded on 3 June 1887 as a civil association, and thus is the oldest surviving football club still participating in the Argentine league. The club also claims to be the oldest football club in the Americas, despite other football clubs, such as Peruvian Lima Cricket F.C., have older foundation dates. Its foundation came barely five years after the creation of the City of La Plata in 1882.
The first sports offered to its members were, as its Spanish name indicates, gymnastics and fencing. Clubs supporting these sports were common among the upper classes at the end of the 19th century (cf. the prior foundation of Gimnasia y Esgrima de Buenos Aires in 1880). Later on, other disciplines were added, including track and field, football, basketball and rugby.
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