Photos: Running Of The Bulls 2012: Photos From The San Fermin Festival
By M. Johanson | Jul 12, 2012 02:08 AM EDT
RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! That's what thousands of thrill-seekers are doing this week in Northern Spain for the 2012 running of the bulls at the annual San Fermin Festival.
If Pamplona, Spain, is famous for anything, it's the annual Running of the Bulls. Thousands of participants take to the street each morning of the nine-day festival to run from a pack of five charging bulls led by a guiding steer. The bulls -- which can weigh up to 600-kilograms (1320-pounds) -- chase the red and white-clothed participants through a winding 849-meter (928-yard) course to the city bullring. The whole ordeal lasts just three minutes and, at 8:00 a.m., it's the culmination of a full night of revelry.
The festival, made famous outside Spain by Ernest Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises," wraps up on Saturday. Four people -- including an American and two Britons -- were slightly injured in minor gorings in the five runs completed so far but, as of yet, there have been no deaths this year. The last fatality came in 2009 when a bull gored a 27-year-old Spaniard to death, piercing his neck, heart and lungs in front of hordes of tourists. Fourteen others have been gored to death since records began in 1924.
Beyond the death-defying running of the bulls, the San Fermin Festival also includes fireworks, sing-alongs, street parades and bullfights, where many of the racing bulls are killed by matadors. The celebration traces its roots back to medieval times and today attracts about a half million visitors to the city of 200,000, according to Pamplona's city hall, including thousands of foreign tourists from the United States, Australia and Britain.
Have a look at some of the best photos from the 2012 event:
Steers enter the bullring during the running of the bulls of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
A fighting bull slides towards the fence as runners sprint alongside at the Estafeta corner during the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Runners sprint alongside Fuente Ymbro fighting bulls at the entrance to the bullring during the fifth running of the bulls at the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Runners are chased by a wild cow during festivities in the bullring following the fifth running of the bulls in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
A runner is tossed by a wild cow during festivities in the bullring following the fifth running of the bulls in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
A runner is tossed by a wild cow during festivities in the bullring following the fifth running of the bulls in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Revellers are showered with sparks from the "Fire Bull," a man carrying a metal structure loaded with fireworks, on the fifth day of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Runners sprint alongside fighting bulls at the entrance to the bullring during the fourth running of the bulls at the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Revellers are showered with sparks from the "Fire Bull," a man carrying a metal structure loaded with fireworks, on the fourth day of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Spanish bullfighter Ivan Fandino performs a pass on a bull during the fourth bullfight of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
A fallen runner gets up in the way of a steer sprinting along with other steers and a Cebada Gago fighting bull at the entrance to the bullring during the third running of the bulls of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Runners enter the bullring during the third running of the bulls of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Recortador jumps over a bull during a contest at Pamplona's bullring on the third day of the San Fermin Festival.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Spanish bullfighter Antonio Nazare gets pushed by a bull upon performing a pass during the third bullfight of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
A fallen runner lies in the way of Miura fighting bulls at the entrance to the bullring during the second running of the bulls of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
A crowd of runners wait for the start of the first running of the bulls of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: Reuters Date:07/12/2012
Fighting cow leaps over bull runners in Plaza de Toros following first running of the bulls of San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: Reuters Date:07/12/2012
A boy wearing a "Kiliki" mask tries to hit a "Kiliki" with a sponge during the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Cabezudo takes a break during San Fermin festival's Comparsa de gigantes y cabezudos in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Kilikis take a break during San Fermin Festival's Comparsa de gigantes y cabezudos in Pamplona.
Source: REUTERS Date:07/12/2012
Spain has a statutory minimum of 22 vacation days and 14 public holidays for a total of 36 days.
Source: REUTERS Date:08/25/2012
