The Torista weekend par excellence has been celebrated for 35 years in Ceret (France), a few kilometers from Perpignan. In times of censorship, citizens went to see films mutilated in Spain or directly archived in the drawer of oblivion to safeguard the collective conscience. In this era of the modern tyranny of the single thought, there are hundreds of fans of Catalonia who cross the border in search of bulls. The Constitutional Court lifted the ban on bullfighting in their land but there are no bullfights throughout the territory.

Those held in Ceret have the bull as their protagonist. In a rather small square, an animal is dealt with that could perfectly be released in the arenas of Madrid or Bilbao. The organizers are a group of amateurs who design their ideal fair in terms of cattle and bullfighters with a budget that comes out of their pockets. Juan Carlos Carreño, experienced bullfighting, is responsible for carrying it out through the relevant contracts and field work -as overseer-.

With this system, three bullfights and a bullfight have been held this weekend. The first was that of Peñajara de Casta Jijona who gave a show on the horse (no bull left with less than three punches) but who stopped too much on the crutch. Javier Cortés stood out with his bullfighting settled of fine stroke to earn the substitution of Robleño on Sunday before the bulls of Escolar. Alberto Lamelas gave his face and Rafaelillo was wounded in the armpit with a three-way gore.

The bullfight of Saltillo had an uneven presentation but three bulls of important background, humiliating and encastados. Brave but in the sense of the search for junk underneath, to do bullfighting. Damián Castaño found one of that style and another of those who ask for papers, with a lot of transmission. With both he was as willing as sincere, walked the only trophy of the afternoon and cried out for more opportunities with a bullfighting frankly to take into account.

Sánchez Vara, who went around the ring, demonstrated his fighting skills by curdling through the right python an overflowing onslaught for any other. On the left he did not have a pass and when he was asked – some Spanish fans – to put himself for that python he did it receiving a defeat that opened the taleguilla at the height of the groin. Maxime Solera did not take advantage of the good condition of the sixth corniabierto.

On Sunday morning took place the bullfight of Los Maños that replaced the originally announced Paloma Sánchez Rico. Injuries in the field first and in the pens later in addition to last minute disagreements led to the total substitution of one iron for the other. He highlighted on the shortlist José Rojo who came from having fought the night before at 21 pm in the Casar de Cáceres in the bullfight of the Circuit of Extremadura. After all night on the road to do the paseíllo in Ceret at 11 in the morning. The requirement with the bullfighters is identical to that of the matadors, reaching a limit of excessive hardness. Rojo deserved some trophy since he understood and committed to the best lot of Los Maños that took better bottom than the bullfight fought in San Isidro. Peseiro and the Child of the Nuns were all will.

The fair closed a strong run of José Escolar of those who maintain the tension in the afternoon from the first defeats in the burladeros until they give their lives reluctantly. An enclosure of weapons take that pushed on the horse with real fierceness. The first, which opened a barbarity from python to python, caught Álvaro de la Calle who had done what he could with the leathery onslaught. The horn entering to kill was of three trajectories that fortunately did not affect any relevant vessel. This was the afternoon of the bullfighting fullness of Gómez del Pilar, who surrendered swallowing everything in the world to his lot that finally gave him the bravery to attack with everything. Intelligent, precise, pure and brave.

Del Pilar uncovered his best version in an afternoon that should have been awarded with four ears. The president sent him one while he himself lost the other two with the sword – a determining factor in this square. Javier Cortés finished off the one who injured De la Calle and tookcharge of the other of the Salamanca lot in addition to his own. For his eagerness to bullfight well the bull that marks difficulties was caught up in two occasions, in one of them until losing consciousness for a few seconds. He remade himself to return to bullfighting as he knows: with his chest, his heels in the sand and his stroke torn. His afternoon was one of overcoming with a lot that gave away absolutely nothing. It also deserved a jackpot.

A fair with a special atmosphere, with its own identity -which we Spaniards who come to it must respect-, which feeds on the bravery of the bull especially exposed in the third of rods (an oasis at this time) and that has authentic heroes who risk their lives with the racana reward of indifference, in most cases.

THE CONTROVERSY

Special chapter require the wounded bullfighters mentioned above: Rafaelillo and Álvaro de la Calle. Their horns have reopened the debate on the protocol of the French infirmaries: they stabilize the patient and refer him to the nearest medical center. That is, they do not operate in the bullring. The argument is that they have a greater number of hospitals by extension than Spain. The problem is that these transfers can cause irreparable damage by losing the immediacy of emergency intervention. In Rafaelillo's case, he was transferred to Perpignan.

There it turned out that, being the French national holiday of July 14, the surgeon was not on duty so they made a cure and proposed to operate the next day. The bullfighter refused and traveled throughout the night until he reached the hospital in Murcia where he was operated. However, Álvaro de la Calle was operated on in a clinic near the bullring although the medical report has not transcended and the published information has been transferred by his brother and swordsman Juanvi de la Calle. Professionals are concerned about this circumstance and do not understand that there is no mobile ICU in each bullring as required by the bullfighting regulations in any celebration. It is urgent to learn from past misfortunes to avoid or minimize future ones.

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