Bugs performs the now immortal Slap Dance to the tune of "Las Chiapanecas" on a confused Toro.
Posted on 07/23/2008 3:08:15 PM PDT by ETL
At least 80 people were injured during a bullfight in Colombia when stands in an overcrowded stadium collapsed underneath the crowd.
Some 500 spectators screamed in panic and scrambled for safety as, following the collapse, the bull charged towards crowds at the stadium in Planadas, in the south of the country.
Two men dressed as clowns tried to distract the bull and tempt it away from the mass of people before others joined them in trying to pin it down.
The dramatic events at the annual fiesta were caught live on television and an investigation into how it happened has been launched.
Edna Patricia Guzman, one of the injured spectators, said the venue was packed and over capacity.
"The bullfighting ring was full and the organisers kept letting more people come, so it was a very strong fall," she said.
Another spectator said: "Everybody was jumping and the stands were too weak - I mean they were moving a lot, no-one paid any attention to the stands."
(Excerpt) Read more at timesonline.co.uk ...
From wikipedia.com...
Spanish-style bullfighting is called corrida de toros (literally running of bulls) or fiesta brava (the ferocious festival). In traditional corrida, three toreros, or matadores, each fight two bulls, each of which is at least four years old and weighs 460–600 kg. Each matador has six assistants — two picadores ("lancers") mounted on horseback, three banderilleros ("flagmen"), and a mozo de espada ("sword page"). Collectively they comprise a cuadrilla ("entourage").
The modern corrida is highly ritualized, with three distinct stages or tercios, the start of each being announced by a trumpet sound. The participants first enter the arena in a parade to salute the presiding dignitary, accompanied by band music. Torero costumes are inspired by 18th century Andalusian clothing, and matadores are easily distinguished by their spectacular "suit of lights" (traje de luces).
Next, the bull enters the ring to be tested for ferocity by the matador and banderilleros with the magenta and gold capote ("dress cape").
In the first stage, the tercio de varas ("the lancing third"), the matador first confronts the bull and observes his behavior in an initial section called suerte de capote. Next, a picador enters the arena on horseback armed with a vara ("lance"). To protect the horse from the bull's horns, the horse is surrounded by a peto — a protective cover. Prior to 1909, the horse did not wear any protection, and the bull could literally disembowel the horse during this stage.
At this point, the picador stabs a mound of muscle on the bull's neck, leading to the animal's first loss of blood. The manner in which the bull charges the horse provides important clues to the matador on which side the bull is favoring. If the picador does his job well, the bull will hold its head and horns lower during the following stages of the fight. ["fight"?] This makes it slightly less dangerous while enabling the matador to perform the elegant passes of modern bullfighting.
In the next stage, the tercio de banderillas ("the third of flags"), the three banderilleros each attempt to plant two razor sharp barbed sticks (called banderillas) on the bull's flanks, ideally as close as possible to the wound where the picador drew first blood. These further weaken the enormous ridges of neck and shoulder muscle through loss of blood, while also frequently spurring the bull into making more ferocious charges.
In the final stage, the tercio de muerte ("the third of death"), the matador re-enters the ring alone with a small red cape (muleta) and a sword. It is a common misconception that the color red is supposed to anger the bull, despite the fact bulls are colorblind (the real reason that a red colored cape is used is that any blood stains on it will be less noticeable). He uses his cape to attract the bull in a series of passes, both demonstrating his control over it and risking his life by getting especially close to it. The faena ("work") is the entire performance with the muleta, which is usually broken down into "tandas" or "series". The faena ends with a final series of passes in which the matador with a muleta attempts to maneuver the bull into a position to stab it between the shoulder blades and through the aorta or heart. The act of thrusting the sword is called an estocada.
Occasionally, if the bull has fought bravely, and by petition of the public or the matador, the president of the plaza may grant the bull an indulto. This is when the bull’s life is spared and allowed to leave the ring alive and return to the ranch where it came from. However, few bulls survive the trip back to the ranch. With no veterinarian services at the plaza, most bulls die either while awaiting transportation or days later after arriving at their original ranch. Death is due to dehydration, infection of the wounds and loss of blood sustained during the fight.[8]
Somebody must have thrown a soccer ball out there.
I’m always reminded of Arthur C. Clark’s Childhood’s End when I hear of something bad happening at a bullfight.
You are correct. Bullfighting is barbaric.
Have you seen the vid? They take “the wave” to the next level.
Small Potatoes! Here is a collapse!
**** During the reign of Tiberius, a wooden amphitheater gave way and buried either twenty thousand (Suetonius) or fifty thousand (Tacitus) spectators.***
I just did now. Too bad the wall to where the other bulls were being kept didn't come down as well! Reminds me of the guys (in Dec 2007) who were tormenting the tiger at the SF Zoo when it suddenly leaped out and grabbed one of them. Amazingly, the tiger walked right by other zoo visitors as it hunted down the remaining two tormentors who had ran to the other side of the zoo. Can you imagine seeing a tiger walking pass you at the zoo! Not saying the guy who was mauled to death deserved such a grizzly fate, but I guess the tiger just got fed up with being tormented by people. Too bad it couldn't have just given them a good scare instead.
That tiger was also severely underweight for its size and age. The zoo had had issues before with it’s feeding of Tatiana, guess they’d cut back again. Not only was she angered, she was starving.
Ole! I ALWAYS cheer for the bulls.
I say make it fair. Give the matador a K-Bar and nothing else. See how long he lasts.
Didn’t Jeffry Dahmer start out mistreating animals?
Sick “sport”. From a guy that supports hunting.
I remember that! :)
What’s more amazing about this story is that they found out bull’s can actually laugh their a$$es off.
Bugs performs the now immortal Slap Dance to the tune of "Las Chiapanecas" on a confused Toro.
Having seen the Erector set that used to be the downtown ring in Tijuana, I’m surprised I’d never heard of that thing collapsing.
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