Spanish alternative to 'Running of the Bulls' leaves man in coma; 660-pound ball careens downhill

By Douglas Ernst - The Washington Times - Wednesday, August 30, 2017

A Spanish town’s animal-friendly version of the “Running of the Bulls” left one man in a coma and another with broken ribs and a concussion.

Roughly 700 people gathered in Mataelpino over the weekend for the “Running of the Balls” to try to outrun a 660-pound resin ball rolling downhill at speeds of 20 miles per hour.

Not everyone made it through the 500-meter course safely, which prompted officials to rethink the event.

“We are going to review all of our security measures and boost the information given out because people have started coming here from all over the world,” Mayor Javier Pérez de los Nietos told reporters Tuesday. “We don’t want this to become a tragic event, but rather something fun.”

Social media posts after the incidents show one man standing next to a fence as a giant ball with a bull’s face careens into him. Safety officials then rush to his side to affix a neck brace.

“People who are used to bulls know that they can’t just stand still in front of them because they could be gored,” the mayor added. “But with the ball, some people think that nothing will happen to them — but this is not the case. If they get a direct hit, it can be serious.”

The event was created in 2011, Fox News Channel reported Wednesday.

One Twitter user named Javier posted a video while wondering aloud (English translation by The Washington Times) “I don’t know to what extent these new techniques are safer.”