The Joust of the Rings and the Tournament of the Archers

The first Sunday of October is traditionally the day when the four neighborhoods come to the field to contend for the coveted Palio of the districts. It is a very emotional competition among the villagers. It takes place on a race course located on the slopes of the hill of the old town, specially designed for the competition.

The districts compete on two fronts: The Joust of the Rings and the Tournament of the Archers.

The Joust of the Rings

In the Joust of the Rings each district deploys its own horse and jockey. Each jockey must go galloping on a lap of the track in the shortest time possible, and simultaneously capture the highest possible number of rings with the spear.

Along the way, 9 posts are arranged, each of which holds three rings of different diameter. At the end of three rounds, a winner of the Joust of the Rings is declared. The winner is the district whose jockey has obtained the highest score calculated in relation to the time of travel and the rings captured.

Tournament of the Archers.

In the Tournament of the Archers, each district lines up a shooter who is equipped with a bare wooden bow.

Each shooter has to shoot 6 arrows in each of the three rounds, each of which corresponds to a specific distance from the target (20, 27 and 35 meters). At the end of the rounds, the winner of the archery tournament is declared by the archer who has achieved the highest score.

At the end of the two challenges, the winner of the ‘Palio of the Districts’ is declared to the district that has the highest total score obtained by adding the scores of the Joust of the Rings and the Tournament of the Archers.

There is a procession of the district when they return to the main square of the village, and a public announcement is made of the winner. They are given the banner of the Palio with wings on it  in the presence of the cheering crowd.

The Palio in the years