A Miami Beach man says a full herd of bulls ran right over him during Pamplona’s famed San Fermín festival, leaving him with a compound ankle fracture, heavy bruising and a long trip to the hospital. Yet even after being, in his words, “plowed through” and hauled off the course, long-time runner Ander Etxanobe is already talking about coming back next year.
Runner’s account and injuries
Speaking with CBS News Miami, Etxanobe said he has spent nearly a decade running the encierro, drawing on his Basque family roots. He described the fourth-day spill as one of the worst incidents he has had on the course, telling the station he was left with a compound fracture in his ankle and a badly battered bicep area.
He said he had already completed several runs this year before the fall, and that after being removed from the route it took him more than an hour to reach medical care. Even so, Etxanobe framed the experience as part of a tradition tied to heritage and faith, and said the injury will not keep him from returning to Pamplona next year.
Photos show medics helping him off the course
Photographs published by UPI show medics helping a runner identified as Ander on Calle Mercaderes after he went down in the middle of charging fighting bulls. The images highlight how quickly Pamplona’s tight, cobblestone streets can turn treacherous when a runner trips or is knocked to the ground in the pack.
According to UPI’s captions, emergency crews can be seen guiding him from the course and treating injured runners on the spot as the morning run continues around them.
Why runners keep coming back
The San Fermín festival brings thousands of runners and spectators into Pamplona’s streets each morning, and although deaths are uncommon, injuries are routine, according to AP News. Americans remain a major share of foreign participants, drawn by the encierro’s Hemingway-era lore as much as the raw adrenaline…