Pamplona - Arab Today
Nine people suffered bruises and cuts but no one was gored in the final running of the bulls at Pamplona’s San Fermin festival, Spanish officials said Thursday,
The run produced moments of high tension when several bulls crashed into a pile of fallen runners on entering the bull ring but there were no gorings.
More than a thousand people took part in the 8 a.m., which lasted just under 2½ minutes.
The Navarra regional government said nine participants were admitted to a city hospital for contusions and cuts but none was in serious condition.
The nine-day fiesta, known also for its 24-hour street partying, became world famous with Ernest Hemingway’s 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises” and attracts thousands of foreign tourists.
In the runs, hundreds of daredevils dash with six fighting bulls and their accompanying steer along a 930-yard (850-meter) street course to the city’s bull ring.
The bulls then face matadors and almost certain death in afternoon bullfights.
Bull runs are a traditional part of summer festivals across Spain.
Twelve people, including four Americans, were gored in the eight runs at this year’s festival. Six were later released from the city hospital and the rest were said to be progressing well.
In all, 15 people have died from gorings at the festival since record-keeping began in 1924.
Source: Arab News