Stratospheric exhibition of Xiquets de Valls and first gamma extra of Jove de Tarragona

The Plaça del Blat in Valls has something that defies rational explanation. Call it magic, tradition, or simply the effect of bringing together the two groups of the Xiquets de Valls at the kilometer zero of the casteller event. Whatever it is, Sant Joan 2026 is now part of history. The extreme heat has not prevented the square from once again becoming the stage for one of those days that, with the passage of years, will be remembered.

Completes already announced a historic Sant Joan

The eve of Sant Joan had already put forward a candidacy for a memorable day. The early start proved to be a success and allowed for a frantic pace and an impressive display of potential. La Colla Vella opened the performance with a solid 3d9f before exhibiting the 4d9fp and the 9d8, two extra-gamma structures that already hinted at where things were heading. The rosats finished the day with the pd7f, which also hinted at much more ambitious goals. La Joves, for their part, completed the big wagon, the 3d9f, and an impeccable 2d8f that announced bigger challenges for the next day. Francesc Inglès's team closed the day with a very hard-worked pd6, but defended with skill.

The Plaça del Blat experiences a historic day

La Joves opened Sant Joan with a textbook 3d9f, the fourth of the season. A perfect castle, without any complications, almost a necessary formality before facing the day's great challenge. Beside it, La Vella responded with an epic 5d9f. The pink-clad team had seen it only loaded in Vendrell and, after a dismantled attempt, they finally found the formula to complete it. It was a titanic struggle, especially in the third and fourth floors.

The best was yet to come. And indeed, the second round elevated the event to another dimension. First, La Joves. After dismantling a foot, the red-clad team attacked the 4d9sf. The conviction was there from the first moment. Also extreme serenity and confidence. The result was a true exhibition, and with it, the earliest total castle in the history of castells was unloaded in the Plaça del Blat.

The Vella's response, however, was not long in coming. Also after a dismantled base, the rosats have replicated with another impeccable 4d9sf. It is the fourth gamma extra unloaded by the group in less than twenty-four hours and the seventh consecutive 4d9sf unloaded since the incident of the mythical performance of Sant Fèlix of 2024. Fast, safe, and dominated from start to finish. The Plaça del Blat has erupted before a duel that is already part of the great pages of its history.

With the festival completely unleashed, both teams still had more ammunition. La Joves has opted for the first 2d9fm of the year. The castle demanded a heroic defense. With the dosos placed, the structure became complicated and the manilles suffered greatly. The battle was constant until the end, but the reds managed to resist to complete an extraordinary performance that was crowned with a pd6 of enormous merit. La Vella, far from settling, has still added a new gamma extra to its repertoire. The 7d9f, after a dismantled attempt, ended up unloaded for the third time in the team's history. Another castle of maximum demand that shows that at Portal Nou there are plenty of cards to choose from. Finally, the pink ones put the cherry on top with the first pd8fm of the season, a castle that they had only unloaded once for Sant Joan, in 2023. With this, one of the most complete and ambitious performances ever remembered in Plaça del Blat has been fully ratified.

A great Sant Joan also in Tarragona

As is customary every June 24, the four groups in the city have met in Plaça de la Font to celebrate the Sant Joan festival, one of the most emblematic events in the Tarragona castle-building calendar. On an afternoon marked by high temperatures, the groups brought some of the season's first major challenges to the square.

The Castellers de Sant Pere i Sant Pau were responsible for opening the square. The starting castle was the 3d8, which they managed to execute without any difficulty. In the second round, they completed a very well-resolved 2d7, with a very fast and delicate group of children. Those from the cooperative neighborhood concluded the performance by unloading a 4d8, which confirms, once again, the solidity shown by the group at the start of this season.

Next to them, the Colla Jove Xiquets de Tarragona has chosen the 3d9f as their starting tower. A tower that the purples already master, as with today's they have already unloaded four this season. In the second round came the main objective of the day: the 2d9fm. After a dismantled base, those from Cós del Bou have thrown it up. It was a hard-fought two, with some moments of nerves, but the experience and the good work done last season have allowed them to control it and unload it. In this way, Gina Fort's team has achieved the first extra-level tower of the season and the earliest in their history. In the third round, the purples could not unload the 4d9f and they recovered with the big cart (4d8). They closed the event with a new espadat of 7.

For their part, the Xiquets de Tarragona have started the performance with a marked 3d8, albeit with some nerves. In the second round and after dismantling two bases, Roger Budesca's team unloaded the first 7d8 of the season. A seven that presented very good measurements and at no time did it seem like it was the first. The mattress makers completed the performance with the 4d8.

Finally, the Xiquets del Serrallo have debuted with a dismantled attempt of 9d7. The structure presented good dimensions and worked calmly, but the children didn't quite see it clearly. In fact, one of the enxanetes reached the top of the pom before deciding to dismantle the castle. In the second round, they reliably unloaded the 5d7, followed by a well-executed 2d7. They concluded the performance with a 4d7.