Thousands of thrill seekers took part in the first running of the bulls at the San Fermín festival in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona.
Several runners took knocks and hard falls in the 8 a.m. event but no one was gored by the beasts, a frequent feature of the spectacle.
The festival attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists. Nearly 1.7 million people visited Pamplona for the celebrations in 2022, and forecasts are higher for this year with all COVID-19 constraints ended.
In the run, six bulls guided by six tame oxen charged along a route through Pamplona’s streets for around two minutes and 30 seconds before reaching the bull ring. The festival was made famous by Ernest Hemingway’s 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises.” This year marks the 100th anniversary of Hemingway’s first visit to the festival.
Friday’s run was the first of eight scheduled. The rest of day usually includes massive sessions of drinking, eating and attending cultural events.
Four runners were gored in the festival last year. Sixteen people have died in bull runs since 1910, most recently in 2009. The bulls that run each morning are killed in the afternoon by professional bullfighters.
Animal rights activists annually campaign against the festival, claiming it is cruel to animals.
A “recortador” tries to place a ring on a horn of a cow during the “Recortadores Festival” of the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A Cebada Gago’s fighting bull runs among revellers during the third day of the running of the bulls during the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) Revellers sing a song before running with La Palmosilla’s fighting bulls during the first day of the running of the bulls at the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, northern Spain, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A “recortador” tries to place a ring on a horn of a cow, during the “Recortadores Festival” of the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) Cebada Gago’s fighting bulls run among revellers during the third day of the running of the bulls during the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) Bullfighter Fernando Robleno is gored by a bull during second bullfighter at the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Saturday, July 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) La Palmosilla’s fighting bulls run among revellers during the first day of the running of the bulls during the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A Cebada Gago’s fighting bull runs among revellers during the third day of the running of the bulls during the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A reveller concentrates before running with La Palmosilla’s fighting bulls during the first day of the running of the bulls during the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A woman sings during the procession in honor of Saint Fermin at San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, northern Spain, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) Bullfighter Isaac Fonseca celebrates after performing on the second bullfight at the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A reveler with a tattoo of a bull, reading in basque language Iruna, the name of Pamplona city, during the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) Bullfighter Fernando Robleno lies on the bullring as he was gored by a bull during second bullfighter at the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Saturday, July 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A woman sings during the procession in honor of Saint Fermin at San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, northern Spain, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) A “recortador” jumps over the barrier of the bullring as he tries to place a ring onto the horn of a cow during the “Recortadores Festival” of the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Sunday, July 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos) Bullfighter Juan del Alamo performances during second bullfight at the San Fermin fiestas in Pamplona, Spain, Saturday, July 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
