San Fermín 1981: A City Determined to Prove Something
July 6 to 14, 1981. Eight encierros and no deaths, one year after the two deaths of July 13, 1980.
Curated by Dennis Clancey
· Founder of Encierro, veteran bull runner
8
Encierros
0
Deaths
Looking Back at 1981
Dennis Clancey · Founder, Encierro
Looking back at 1981, what strikes me most is how much weight the city was carrying before a single bull left the corral. The 1980 fiesta had brought two deaths on the course, and that kind of loss does not reset when the calendar turns. The question going into July 1981 was not whether the fiesta would happen, because it always does, but whether the run could feel like itself again.
It did. Eight ganaderías ran eight mornings, from Pablo Romero on July 7 to Marqués de Domecq on July 14, and no one died. On July 13, one year to the day after the deaths of 1980, the Conde de la Maza bulls ran the seventh encierro.
Dennis Clancey, Founder, Encierro
1981 in contextThe Encierro in 1981
Eight ganaderías ran in 1981, from Pablo Romero on July 7 to Marqués de Domecq on July 14, with Julio Aguirre, Fermín Bohórquez, Conde de la Corte, Miura, Albaserrada and Conde de la Maza in between. The week included a Miura morning on Saturday, July 11, and the morning of July 13, one year to the day after the two deaths of 1980. No one died in any of the eight encierros.
The emotional context of the 1980 deaths added another layer. Two runners had died in 1980, and in the tight community of serious encierro participants, those losses meant something personal.
"The encierro is not a spectacle designed for comfort. It is a negotiation between a runner and an animal many times his weight, conducted at full speed on a street built for neither of them."Morning by morning
Every 1981 Encierro, Day by Day
Each run with its ganadería. The route runs 848.6 meters from Santo Domingo to the ring.
Tue July 7 · First run
Pablo Romero
El País reported five Pablo Romero bulls covering the route in 2 minutes 50 seconds, with nine light injuries.
Wed July 8 · Second run
Julio Aguirre
El País reported one serious goring.
Thu July 9 · Third run
Fermín Bohórquez
Fri July 10 · Fourth run
Conde de la Corte
Sat July 11 · Fifth run
Miura
Sun July 12 · Sixth run
Albaserrada
Mon July 13 · Seventh run
Conde de la Maza
It was one year to the day after the two deaths of July 13, 1980.
What the Record Remembers
Memory
The Weight of July 13
July 13, 1981 fell on a Monday, one year to the day after the two deaths of 1980. The Conde de la Maza bulls ran the seventh encierro that morning.
Opening Runs
The First Two Mornings
The 1981 encierros opened on Tuesday, July 7, with five Pablo Romero bulls covering the route in 2 minutes 50 seconds, according to El País, which counted nine light injuries. On July 8 the Julio Aguirre bulls ran the second encierro, and El País reported one serious goring.
Ganadería
Miura in the Fifth Slot
In 1981, Miura ran fifth, on July 11, with Albaserrada, Conde de la Maza, and Marqués de Domecq running after them.
Official Sanfermines PosterOfficial Poster of San Fermín 1981
Cartel 1981 by José Mª Nebreda.
Source: Ayuntamiento de Pamplona, cartel archive
Beyond the runThe City in 1981
Pamplona in the summer of 1981 still carried the memory of the 1980 fiesta, when two runners died on the morning of July 13. The chupinazo opened the fiesta at noon on July 6, and the encierros began the next morning on the same 848.6 meters from Santo Domingo to the ring.
All eight encierros ran without a death. The Marqués de Domecq bulls ran the last one on the morning of July 14, and the Pobre de Mí at midnight closed the fiesta.
The recordHow 1981 Came Together
Key facts in the 1981 fiesta, kept on the record.
6 July 1981
Chupinazo launches the 1981 San Fermín festival at noon in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. The rocket goes up, the crowd in red and white responds, and eight days of encierros begin.
11 July 1981
Miura runs the fifth encierro, on a Saturday morning.
13 July 1981
One year to the date after the deaths that marked the 1980 festival, Conde de la Maza bulls run the seventh encierro.
14 July 1981
Marqués de Domecq bulls complete the eighth and final encierro of the 1981 festival.
San Fermín 1981, Answered
What was different about the 1981 fiesta compared to 1980?
The most significant difference was the absence of deaths. The 1980 festival had two deaths on July 13; the 1981 festival ran all eight encierros with no deaths.
Why did Miura not close the 1981 encierro?
The sources we have found do not give a reason. In 1981 Miura ran fifth, on July 11, and Marqués de Domecq ran the closing encierro on July 14.
Which ganadería closed the 1981 fiesta?
Marqués de Domecq closed the 1981 San Fermín with the eighth and final encierro on July 14.
Sources
Every fact on this page is checked against these sources. Where sources disagreed, the one closest to the day won.
- El País, "Una mujer lanzó el chupinazo de los sanfermines", 1981-07-07. elpais.com
- El País, "Comenzaron los encierros de los sanfermines (portada)", 1981-07-08. elpais.com
- El País, "¿Eran toros o elefantes?", 1981-07-09. elpais.com
- El País, "Tomás Campuzano entra en Pamplona con todos los honores", 1981-07-10. elpais.com
- El País, "El Miura de la mirada altiva", 1981-07-12. elpais.com
- Ayuntamiento de Pamplona, "Carteles de San Fermin". pamplona.es
- Ayuntamiento de Pamplona, "The Chupinazo and the Pobre de Mi". pamplona.es
- Ayuntamiento de Pamplona, "Encierro (turismo, French version)". pamplona.es
Planning your own run?
The 1981 festival cannot be understood without knowing what came before it: explore the 1980 encierro to trace the losses of the year before, or move forward to 1982 to see how Pamplona built on the relief of a year without tragedy.