A bullfighter has died after being slammed into the wall of an arena by a bull he was taunting in order to facilitate a move marking the end of the show.
As per reports, 22-year-old Manuel Maria Trindade was making his first ever appearance at the Campo Pequeno Bullring in Lisbon, Portugal last week when the tragic incident unfolded.
Trindade was to act as the “forcado” during the show, meaning it was his job to provoke the bull into charging for the “pega de care” or “face catch” performance that typically serves as the final event in a Portuguese bullfight.
The sequence sees several bullfighters form a single-file line, with each one attempting to subdue the charging bull and ultimately bring it to a halt.
During the show on Friday, August 22, however, Trindade’s provocation resulted in the 700kg (almost 1600lb) bull targeting him and charging him at full speed.
A grim recording of what followed has since been uploaded to social media, showing Trindade desperately trying to slow the bull by grabbing hold of its horns. Enraged, the bull threw him into the air and ignored the best efforts of his fellow bullfighters to bring it under control.
The almost 7,000 people in attendance watched on in horror as the bull drove Trindade to the arena’s edge and slammed him into the wall, leaving him with catastrophic head injuries.
The other bullfighters were eventually able to get control of the bull, while Trindade was rushed to hospital and placed in an induced coma. Sadly, he was beyond saving, and died there 24 hours later after suffering a cardiorespiratory arrest.
As per the Daily Mail, Trindade had followed in his father’s footsteps in joining the amateur bullfighting troupe. The fatal event at the Campo Pequeno arena marked his debut.
The fate of the bull, meanwhile, is unclear, though Portuguese law forbids the killing of a bull at the culmination of a bullfight (unlike in Spain).
Bullfighting remains legal in most of Spain, Portugal, France, the Philippines and a handful of other countries, much to the dismay of animal rights groups.
Earlier this month, a man believed to be 35 years old died after being gored during a controversial bullfighting festival known as ‘corraleja’ in the small town of Fundación, Magdalena, Colombia.
In footage from the event, Yovanis Marquez can be seen charging at the bull and attempting to leap over it. The panicking animal responds by going on the attack, goring Marquez and flinging him up into the air.
Local reports claim that the 35-year-old died of his injuries after being rushed to hospital. Speaking to El Tiempo, one witness explained: “He stood up as if he was fine, but the blood was flowing. It was only a few seconds before he fell to the ground.”
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