16 August 2023: And the winner was…OCA! Click here to watch the replay.
Tartuca 🐢: Sebastiano Murtas (Grandine) on Schietta (F12)
Bruco 🐛: Enrico Bruschelli (Bellocchio) on Zenis (C8)
Chiocciola 🐌: Giuseppe Zedde (Gingillo) on Reo Confesso (C13)
OCA 🪿: Carlo Sanna (Brigante) on ZIO FRAC (C8)
Pantera 🐆: Jonatan Bartoletti (Scompiglio) on Anda e Bola (C7)
Aquila 🦅: Valter Pusceddu (Bighino) on Viso d’Angelo (C9)
Torre 🐘: Giosuè Carboni (Carburo) on Tabacco (C11)
Drago 🐉 : Andrea Coghe (Tempesta) on Vitzichesu
Giraffa 🦒: Giovanni Atzeni (Tittia) on Abbasantesa (F7)
Istrice 🦔 (rincorsa): Federico Guglielmi (Tamuré) on Antine Day (C7)
(The order of the Contrade in between the starting ropes was determined by lot minutes before the race.)
16 August 2023: This was an incredible Palio - it truly had everything! A long and tense time in between the starting ropes, an odd mossa/start (but declared valid by the Mossiere, Bartolo Ambrosione), and Giraffa got off to a commanding lead. However, the jockey Tittia, gunning for his 6th consecutive win, took the first San Martino curve wide and crashed into the mattresses, falling off, injuring himself and the horse (who was immediately taken to the veterinary clinic; she was treated and is doing very well!). Then it looked as if Pantera had it in the bag, but somehow, the incredibly experienced jockey Scompiglio fell at the third San Martino. Now we know that the horse’s shoe had become dislodged during that long mossa; Pantera would have surely won otherwise. All this time, the Oca horse had been running without a jockey as Brigante fell off at the first San Martino! And then Torre was hot on Oca’s heals for the last straightaway and up into the last Casato curve, but then Carburo fell off too! Zio Frac won for Oca (he’s now 2 for 4) with Torre in a close second, but, as we know in Palio, this left Torre utterly humiliated, finishing as “first loser” to their rival. Jubilation for the ocaioli, who embraced each other in the Piazza and then processed the silk banner painted by Marco Lodola to the Cathedral to give thanks to the Virgin of the Assumption, to whom the race is dedicated. They then they took the banner home to their Oratory so that their patron saint, Catherine of Siena, could also behold the newest addition to their family, and the victors continued to process around the Piazza well into the wee hours of the night. “Nel Palio ci sta sempre tutto” - “in the Palio everything and anything is always possible”; this Palio was the perfect example of that! 🪿💚🤍❤️🪿
For more information about the Palio, click here!
For more information, click here!
Ten compete, only ONE wins…
Palio dell’Assunta, 16 August 2023:
10 Competing Contrade: Torre 🐘 • Drago 🐉 • Bruco 🐛 • Pantera 🐆 • Oca 🪿 • Aquila 🦅 • Istrice 🦔 • Tartuca 🐢 • Chiocciola 🐌 • Giraffa 🦒 •
NB: Next August, the 7 Contrade who did not compete will run by right, and the remaining 3 will be chosen by lot after the 2 July Palio 2024.
The Historical Procession and Palio itself will be available on La7 from 16.30 Italy time via https://www.la7.it.
* The first 7 Contrade are running by right (they did not run the last August Palio); the remaining 3 were chosen by lot on 9 July in the Piazza del Campo.
To view the Palio from a medieval tower above the starting (and finishing) ropes, click here for more details.
