 At the height of popularity for both American bicycle racing and boxing in the 1920s, Coney Island drome was host to regional and state championship bicycle races, and boxing heroes including Rocky Marciano, Joe Louis, Jersey Joe Walcott, and Sugar Ray Robinson.As the Great Depression began, bicycle racing on the Eastern Seaboard collapsed.On August 3, 1930, the velodrome was destroyed by fire but due to its location and use was rebuilt.