The world rally of coleo, when men on horses pull the tails of bulls until they fall over, is to be held in Villavicencio in central Colombia from October 12 to 15.
Coleo has been used by Latin American cowboys for many years to knock over a steer that has escaped from the herd. In the past, the villages closed off their streets for the local cowboys to show off their cow-tipping skills, but since 1997 bull-pullers from all over Latin America and even the U.S. have gathered in the Villavicencio stadium in a battle to the last bull standing.
The cowboys will lock horns in three days of competition where they gallop after a herd of stampeding cattle, seeking out the stray bull separated from the herd, grabbing its tail and galloping off until the steer goes tumbling on to its back.
The festival which has seen almost 200,000 visitors in previous years has a packed program of events with performances from artists such as vellenato superstar Peter Manjarrez, Medellin reggaeton heartthrob J Balvin, llanera musicians Walter Silva and Choclo Valderrama, pop group Las Estrellas, famous Colombian artists John Onofre and Daniel Gauldron among others.
See full program of events here.
