Confidence boost for the greens and the Xiquets in a festival with pending homework for the Vella and the Jove

The Plaça de la Font became this Sunday the setting for the first Sunday of the Santa Tecla festivities, on a day that promised strong emotions and arrived with high expectations. With the four groups having ambitious goals and the Castells Competition ever closer, Tarragona was expecting a great day. And it has been, although not for everyone. The Castellers de Vilafranca fulfilled their program without problems and the Xiquets de Tarragona recovered the 'tripleta màgica', while the Colla Vella dels Xiquets de Valls and the Colla Jove Xiquets de Tarragona left the square with some of their most important goals still pending.

La Vella opens the square with the ten-story castells in mind

The Colla Vella dels Xiquets de Valls was in charge of opening the square. The 'rosats' arrived in Tarragona with the desire to take a step forward compared to the Sant Fèlix festival and with the ten-story castle in their sights. They started, however, with two dismantled bases before being able to move forward with the 4d9sf. Once the structure was set, the Valls group unloaded it with great calm, in a first round that allowed them to gain confidence.

In the second round came one of the day's great challenges: the 4d10fm. La Vella started to build it, but when the children were getting into position, the 'rosats' decided to dismantle it. There was still time to try again. And so it was. In the third round, after a new dismantled base, those from Valls bet on the ten-story castle again. This time they managed to load it, but the structure could not withstand until the end and fell at the exit of the seventh level.

In the improvement round, the Valls group opted for the 3d9f. Also after a dismantled base, but this time without suffering, they completed the castle. There was still the pd8fm left. La Vella loaded it, but could not complete it.

The greens unload everything

The Castellers de Vilafranca were the second to perform and made it clear from the very first human tower that they came to Tarragona with very clear intentions. They started with the 3d9fa, a construction that worked especially on the exit of the upper group (pom de dalt). The children had to be careful to avoid touching the central pole (agulla), but the 'greens' knew how to maintain the structure until completing it.

The great moment arrived in the second round. The 3d10fm was raised with confidence. The unloading was fast, with a small tremor that did not prevent the Vilafranquins from completing the human tower. It had been ten years since the 'greens' had successfully unloaded this human tower in Tarragona. And it showed. The celebration was immediate, with hugs and shouts among the castellers, aware of what they had just achieved.

With confidence through the roof, the 'greens' went looking for the 5d9f. This time without major scares and with solid execution, they added a new 'extra range' (gamma extra) to their tally. And the pd8fm was still pending. The enxaneta climbed up with tranquility and they completed the fourth human tower of their performance.

Four human towers, four unloaded. A perfect performance. The square responded to the height of the moment and the castellers celebrated the milestone with shouts of "all unloaded". But the party did not end there. With the Competition already approaching, the 'greens' were already thinking about the next challenge and, even, requests for one more floor on the pillar appeared.

La Jove falls, but knows how to react

The Colla Jove Xiquets de Tarragona approached their performance with the intention of having a great day at home. The 'liles' (purples) began with the 5d9f, which they unloaded very quickly and which gave them confidence before tackling the day's main objective. In the second round, the 3d10fm arrived. The 'liles' began to raise a structure that, from the very first steps, demanded a lot of work from the trunk. The 'castell' (human tower) trembled during the climb and they had to work hard. Everything seemed to be holding, but as the 'dosos' (the two children at the top) began to get into position, the structure broke. The fall was a hard blow and they had to change the script of the performance.

With their main objective slipping through their fingers, the Tarragona team opted for the 4d9f, which they built in an excellent manner. In the repetition round, they completed the 3d9f and ended the day with a pd7f. It was not the day they had imagined, but the Jove demonstrated the ability to recover after the fall and finish the performance with good feelings.

The Xiquets recover the magic triplet

The Xiquets de Tarragona had a very clear mission: to recover a 'magic triplet' (tripleta màgica) that had been eluding them for two years. The 'matalassers' began with the 5d8, the cathedral. A human tower that struggled especially at the fourth level, but which the people of Tarragona were able to complete to start laying the foundations for their performance.

In the second round, they bet on the 3d9f. And here arrived one of the most tense moments of the day, as the trunk had to work very hard until the end. Even so, the 'matalassers' did not falter. They fought for every level, maintained the tension, and managed to complete it. It was the first of the season. With the 3d9f already unloaded, only the 4d9f was missing to complete the triplet.

After a dismantled base, Roger Budesca's group tried it again. The human tower did not have a perfect size, but the group knew how to hold it. And then, yes: magic triplet. The celebration was special. Not only because the Xiquets were back to completing the three human towers, but also because they did it at home and in one of the most important events of the season. A reward for the work done and, also, a boost of confidence to face the coming weeks.

The day ended with a joint 'vano de pilars' (fan of pillars) among the four groups. The Plaça de la Font began to empty after more than four hours of human towers, when it was past 4:00 PM.

The 'Concurs de Castells' is already looming on the horizon and there are few days left for all four groups to test themselves again. The first Sunday of the Santa Tecla festivities has been just one more chapter of an end of the season that promises strong emotions.