Jallikattu,' the annual bull taming event slated to be held in several parts of Tamil Nadu got off to a colourful start here on Wednesday, the Pongal day, in which 641 bulls and 607 tamers took part.
As the feisty bulls, one after the other started racing towards the lengthy sporting arena from the entrance, known as 'vadivasal,' young men waiting with bated breath strained every nerve to latch on to the hump of the animals.
Interestingly, as many as 397 bulls of the total 641 that entered the arena could not be dominated by tamers and these animals emerged successful, an official told PTI.
"Don't touch the horns," "many men don't chase one animal," "allow the bull to go; it has won," were among the instructions that reverberated in the arena for participants.
The Jallikattu at Avaniapuram held here today marks the start of the once a year bull taming sport in many rural and semi-urban regions of Tamil Nadu.
Similar events will be held at Palamedu tomorrow and in Alanganallur on January 17 and these are among the hugely popular bull taming contests in the state.
If the participant hangs on to the hump of the bull for a determined distance, he is declared a winner and if not, the animal emerges the victor.
In each of the nine rounds, about 60 to 70 participants with colour coded T-shirts and shorts took part.
Festivity marked the event and scores of spectators from the gallery craned their necks to have a glimpse of determined men trying to get the better of the animals in a matter of seconds as soon as they were released into the arena.
A huge number of spectators, including many foreign tourists with cameras, were glued to the event.
Keenly watching the game, organisers quickly declared -over the public address system- if the animal or the man was the winner and the prize.
The sporting arena was barricaded from the enclosures marked for spectators.
The official said medical examination of both the men and animals decided their participation.
He said 62 men were injured, including 34 participants and 28 spectators, of whom eight were referred to the Government Rajaji Hospital.
However, no bull was injured, he added.
Out of the total of 730 bull tamers who were issued tokens, five were rejected for consumption of alcohol and only 607 participated in the event.
"As regards bulls, due to paucity of time only 641 could take part" and 118 could not. Eight animals were disallowed for reasons like restlessness, the official said.
Elaborate security arrangements were made and access to medical facilities were made readily available. The event was held under the supervision of a panel, led by a retired judge.
Tehran (Iran): Iran's president warned on Wednesday that European soldiers in the Mideast "could be in danger" after three nations challenged Tehran over breaking the limits of its nuclear deal.
Tehran's top diplomat meanwhile acknowledged that Iranians "were lied to" for days following the Islamic Republic's accidental shootdown of a Ukrainian jetliner that killed 176 people.
President Hassan Rouhani's remarks in a televised Cabinet meeting represent the first direct threat he's made to Europe as tensions remain high between Tehran and Washington over President Donald Trump withdrawing the US from the deal in May 2018.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif's admission, which came at a summit in New Delhi on Wednesday, represents the first time an Iranian official referred to earlier claims from Tehran that a technical malfunction downed the Ukraine International Airlines flight as a lie.
The shootdown — and subsequent days of denials that a missile had downed it — sparked days of angry protests in the country.
The current tensions between Iran and the US reached fever-pitch two weeks ago with the American drone strike in Baghdad that killed the powerful Revolutionary Guard General Qassem Soleimani.
The general had led Iranian proxy forces abroad, including those blame for deadly roadside bomb attacks on US troops in Iraq.
Iran retaliated with a ballistic missile strike targeting Iraqi military bases housing US forces early last Wednesday, just before an anti-aircraft battery shot down the Ukrainian airliner taking off from Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport.
Amid all of this, Britain, France and Germany launched the so-called "dispute mechanism" pertaining to Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Speaking before his Cabinet, Rouhani showed a rarely seen level of anger in his wide-ranging remarks Wednesday.
"Today, the American soldier is in danger, tomorrow the European soldier could be in danger," Rouhani said.
"We want you to leave this region but not with war. We want you to go wisely. It is to your own benefit." Rouhani did not elaborate.