At least two runners were injured during the third bull run at Pamplona’s traditional Festival of San Fermín in northern Spain on Tuesday.
That meant fewer people were hurt than in previous races, when five to six of the participants ended up in hospital, according to commentators on the state TV station RTVE. They expressed relief after some dangerous scenes during the event.
Hundreds of people chase six massive bulls, some weighing over 600 kilograms, and several oxen into an arena in races held until Sunday as part of the annual festival, which dates back to the 16th century.
The bulls are corralled into Pamplona’s bullring, where they are then killed by matadors during bullfights.
While the festival dedicated to the Catholic Saint Fermín also includes numerous concerts and processions, the bull runs and bullfights are the highlight of the festivities.
Dozens of runners, most of them young men, are injured every year as they race along the 875-metre course. There have been 16 fatalities since 1924, the last in 2009.
Animal rights activists call the bull runs “medieval cruelty,” and say it must be halted immediately. The bull run is nothing more than panicked animals trying to escape through crowds of people screaming, they say.
Despite this, the festival continues to attract thousands of visitors from all over the world.
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