The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain LOS SAN FERMINES The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain H Garcia Ostos

This a Spanish Fighting Bull This a Spanish Fighting Bull. They weigh between 500 and 700 kg (the weight of 8 fully grown men). They are very strong and aggressive. Their horns are longer than those of any other type of bull. They are very muscular and strongly territorial.

Can you imagine releasing a good number of these bulls in a crowded street. Madness? Well, that happens in Pamplona, northern Spain in July.

The running of the bulls have been taking place in Pamplona in Spain for nearly one hundred years.

The running of the bulls (In Spanish “encierro”) involves hundreds of people running in front of the bulls down a half a mile stretch of narrow streets of a section of the old town of Pamplona. You have to be at least 18 and physically fit to be able to participate.

The run ends in the Pamplona's bullring taking a mean time of around 3 minutes where the bulls would be held until the afternoons bullfight when they would be killed. Bullruns are held between the 7th and the 14th of July

The event begins at 8 a.m. when a first firecracker is lit to announce the release of the bulls from their corral. Before it used to start at 6 o’clock in the morning. Runners gather earlier at the beginning of the itinerary.

The event is dangerous. Since 1925, 15 people have been killed during the event –– most recently on 10 July 2009 -- and every year between 200 and 300 people are injured during the run although most injuries are contusions due to falls and are not serious. Some facts

www.rtve.es Would you like to watch today’s “encierro”? Spanish public TV (equivalent to BBC) shows every “encierro” from the 7th of July until its conclusion on TV and on the internet. www.rtve.es

Un encierro limpio y rápido Some headlines: Un encierro limpio y rápido Cinco heridos en Pamplona Tiempo record: dos minutos exactos Toros muy peligrosos y agresivos

Describe one of the runners

Describe one of the runners Un pañuelo Una boina Un periódico Un fajín Unos pantalones Una camiseta Unas zapatillasde deporte Describe one of the runners

Start like this: El corredor lleva… e.g. El corredor lleva un pañuelo rojo. EBI… you add as much detail as possible. e.g. El corredor lleva un periodico en su mano derecha pero no lleva boina.