7 July 2004
Running Of The Bulls
Posted by Zane under: News .
Thousands of red and white-clad runners risked the horns of half-ton fighting bulls in the streets of Pamplona on the first day of the Spanish city’s bull run on Wednesday.One man was taken away on a stretcher after a bull hit him in the back with the side of its horn and another, who tripped in front of a bull, had a narrow escape when the animal simply stepped over him.Foreigners from all over the world take part in the San Fermin festival made famous by Ernest Hemingway’s “The Sun Also Rises,” joining regular Spanish runners in the streets mostly dressed in traditional white with red neckerchiefs and sashes.
Each morning fighting bulls and a handful of steers are released onto the cobbled streets to run an 2,710-foot course to the bullring where they fight that evening.
The fiesta combines the early morning bull runs, afternoon bull fights and all night revelling daily for a week, testing the stamina of even the most determined participants.
Heavy rain overnight made Wednesday’s run particularly treacherous and runners and bulls struggled to keep their feet on the slippery cobblestones in the 2-1/2 minute, adrenaline-filled race.
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