The running of the bulls through the streets of the northern Spanish city of Pamplona started on Thursday and four people were injured in falls but no one was gored. Last year, 10 people were gored during the daily runs and since 1924 when record-keeping began 15 people have died.
More than a thousand thrill-seekers tested their agility and courage by racing alongside fighting bulls in the 8 a.m. run, the first of the San Fermín festival, reported The Associated Press.
Navarra Hospital Dr. Manuel Montesino said three people sustained head injuries while another suffered an arm injury.
A regional government said the four were Spaniards and none was in serious condition.
In the nationally televised morning runs, participants dash along with six bulls and accompanying steer down a narrow 930-yard course from a holding pen to Pamplona's bull ring. The bulls then face matadors and almost certain death in afternoon bullfights.
Thursday's run lasted 2 minutes, 28 seconds.
The nine-day fiesta became world famous with Ernest Hemingway's 1926 novel "The Sun Also Rises" and is now one of Spain's most important tourist events.
Many people suffer falls and are trampled on by the bulls or other runners. In one incident last year, four bulls crashed into a bunch of participants close to the end of the race, and several people narrowly missed being gored.
Bull runs, or "encierros" as they are called in Spanish, are a traditional part of summer festivals across Spain.
The festival started Wednesday with the traditional midday launching of a firework rocket — known as the "Chupinazo"— from Pamplona's town hall balcony.
© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.