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EveryCow

Races and contests: the breeds

Jallikattu, kambala, karapan sapi, cow fights in the Alps and the rodeo.

Cattle races, contests and games are held around the world. In Tamil Nadu, jallikattu sees young men try to hold on to the hump of a running bull. On Madura in Indonesia, pairs of bulls race in karapan sapi. In Valais, Hérens cows lock horns to decide the queen of the herd. Bullfighting is part of the culture of Spain, Portugal, southern France and parts of Latin America, and the rodeo is a sport of ranch country in the Americas and Australia. Each has supporters and critics, and several have been the subject of court cases.

Jallikattu and bullock races in India

Jallikattu is held in Tamil Nadu in the Pongal season. A bull is released from a narrow gate into an arena, and participants try to hold its hump for a set distance or time. Native breeds such as the Kangayam and Pulikulam are raised for it. The sport was banned by the Supreme Court in 2014, then allowed again under a 2017 Tamil Nadu law, which the Supreme Court upheld in 2023. Bullock cart races in Maharashtra and Punjab have followed a similar legal path.

Karapan sapi

Karapan sapi is the bull race of Madura, an island off Java. Two bulls are yoked to a light wooden sledge on which the jockey stands, and pairs race over a straight track of about one hundred metres. Races are held in the dry season, from village rounds up to a final in the island's main town. Winning bulls bring their owners standing as well as prizes, and the best are fed and cared for with great attention.

Cow fights of the Alps and Japan

In Valais in Switzerland, Hérens cows naturally contest rank in the herd by pushing with their heads and horns. The combats de reines, the battles of the queens, turn this into regional and national contests, with a queen crowned in each weight class. The animals are rarely hurt. In Japan, bull-against-bull contests called tōgyū are held in Okinawa, in Uwajima in Shikoku and in parts of Niigata and Iwate, where bulls push head to head until one turns away.

Bullfighting and the rodeo

The corrida, in which a matador faces and kills a bull of the Lidia breed, is held in Spain, Portugal, southern France and several countries of Latin America. Some regions have banned it and others protect it as heritage. In the course camarguaise of southern France, raseteurs try to snatch rosettes from the bull's horns and the bull is not killed. The rodeo, with bull riding, roping and steer wrestling, grew from ranch work in the Americas and is popular in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Australia.

Worth knowing

  • Jallikattu: Bull-embracing contest of Tamil Nadu
  • Karapan sapi: Bull races of Madura
  • Combat de reines: Hérens cow contests of Valais
  • Tōgyū: Bull contests of Okinawa and Uwajima
  • Course camarguaise: Rosette contest in which the bull is not killed
  • Corrida de toros: Bullfighting of Spain and Latin America
  • Rodeo: Ranch sports of the Americas and Australia

Sources and further reading

About this page

Original text by the EveryCow desk, written with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Customs are described as tradition, not as advice. If we have something wrong, tell us.

Races and contests on EveryCow

The breeds written up so far, best known first.

PurposeDairyBeefDraughtDual-purposeTriple-purposeSportCeremonialGrazingHeritageMiniature
LineageTaurineZebuSangaCompositeYakMithunBantengWild
TraitHeat-tolerantCold-hardyDrought-hardyDisease-resistantThrifty foragersDocileSpiritedQuick and strongPolledLong-hornedRich milkMarbled beefLong-livedEasy calving
🇵🇰 Pakistan and 5 moreZebu Humped, heat-tolerant cattle of South Asia, kept for milk, meat, work and ridingZebu · Dairy · Heat-tolerant 🇮🇳 IndiaHallikarಹಳ್ಳಿಕಾರ್ A draught breed from Karnataka, India, known for strength and the ability of both oxen and cows to plough.Zebu · Draught · Docile 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreKangayamகாங்கேயம் A grey Tamil draught zebu whose bulls run in races and in the Jallikattu arenaZebu · Draught · Quick and strong 🇮🇳 IndiaAlambadi A humped draught breed from Tamil Nadu, horned and now close to extinctionZebu · Draught · Quick and strong 🇮🇩 IndonesiaMaduraSapi madura A small reddish-brown Indonesian hybrid of zebu and banteng, raced with a sledZebu · Sport · Quick and strong

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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